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A HANDBOOK 



OF 

INVALID COOKING 

FOR THE USE OF 

NURSES IN TRAINING-SCHOOLS 

NURSES IN PRIVATE PRACTICE 

AND OTHERS WHO CARE FOR THE SICK 

CONTAINING EXPLANATORY LESSONS ON THE PROPERTIES 

AND VALUE OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF FOOD, AND RECIPES 

FOR THE MAKING OF VARIOUS DISHES 



BY 

MARY A. BOLAND 



INSTRUCTOR IN COOKINC, IN THE JOHNS HOPKINS 
HOSPITAL TRAINING-SCHOOL FOR NUKSES; MEMHER 
OF THE AMEKICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION 



IRerisefc EMtion 




IRew JJorfe 

TTbe Century Co. 

1900 









Copyright, 1893, by 
Mary A. Boland. 



'. ., 






THE OEVINNE PRESS, 



PREFACE 

In preparing the following pages for publication, it 
has been my object to present a collection of recipes and 
lessons on food, for the use of nurses. The idea was 
suggested by the need of such a book in the training- 
school of the Johns Hopkins Hospital. It is hoped 
that it ivill be found useful in other hospitals and 
schools where the teaching of the subject of food is 
receiving attention, and also to those who care for their 
own sick and invalid ones at home. 

Part I — the explanatory lessons — includes general 
remarks on chemistry, lessons on the properties of the 
different classes of foods, and special articles on Air, 
Water, Milk, Digestion and Nutrition. Part II con- 
sists of recipes, menus of liquid, light, and convalescent's 
diet, and articles on Serving, Feeding of Children, and 
District Nursing. 

In arranging the explanatory lessons, information has 
been drawn from many sources, but particularly from 
the works % of Atwater and Parkes. It is the intention 
that these lessons be studied in connection with the 
practical work; they contain matter suggestive of that 
which it is necessary to understand in order that some- 
thing may be known ofihe complex changes which take 
place in food in the various processes of cooking. 

The recipes have been carefully chosen and perfected, 
some having been changed many times before final adop- 
tion. In most of them the quantities are small, — such 
amounts as would be required for one person, — but by 

iii 



iv PREFACE 

multiplying or dividing the formulae any quantity may 
be made, with uniform results. 

Detailed descriptions have been given in order that 
those who know nothing of cooking may be able, by in- 
telligently following the instructions, to make acceptable 
dishes. Repetition and similarity of arrangement will, 
it is hoped, serve to impress upon the mind certain 
points and principles. 

In some instances the recipes are original, but for the 
most part the ideas have been gathered from lessons and 
lectures on cooking, and from standard books, among 
them Mrs. Lincoln 7 s "Boston Cook Book. 11 Generally the 
order in which each recipe has been written is the order 
in which the different ingredients should be put together. 
The proportions have been placed first, and separately 
from the description of the process, for greater conve- 
nience in using. 

Valuable information for the chapter on the feeding 
of children was found in Uffelmanrfs "Hygiene of the 
Child. 11 

I gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Drs. Simon 
Flexner and William D. Booker of the Johns Hopkins 
Hospital in reviewing, respectively, the explanatory les- 
sons and the chapter on the feeding of children. 

Baltimore, Jan. 18, 1893. M. A. B. 



CONTENTS 



Introduction 

Part I 
Explanatory Lessons 



Preparation op Food 


PAGE 

. . . . 9 


Chemical and Physical Changes 


10 


Elements 


12 


Air 

Fire 


... 14, 38 
14 


Composition of the Body. 

Principal Chemical Compounds in the Body. . 

The Five Food Principles 

Water 


16 

17 

18 

19 


Protein . 


24 


Fats 


28 


Carbohydrates 


31 


Mineral Matters 


65 


Milk 


44 


Digestion 


49 


Nutrition 


53 



Part II 
Recipes 

Beef-juice, Beef-tea, and Broths 75 

Gruels 83 

Mush and Porridge 90 

Drinks 95 

Jellies 120 

Toast 128 

Soups 134 

v 



vi CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Oysters 145 

Potatoes , 161 

Meats 158 

Stews 185 

Sweetbreads 188 

Fish 191 

Custards, Creams, Puddings, and Blanc-Mange 195 

Salads 211 

Ice-cream, Sherbets, and Ices 217 

Cooked Fruits 225 

Bread 232 

Cake 246 

Diet Lists or Menus for the Sick 254 

Liquid Diet — Five Menus 254 

Light Diet — Five Menus for Breakfast, Dinner, 

Supper, and Lunch 256 

Convalescent's Diet — Eight Menus for Spring, 

Summer, Autumn, and Winter 260 



Serving 

Importance of Skill in Cooking the Things to be 

Served 267 

Good Serving a Necessity for the Sick 268 

Preparation of the Invalid's Tray 268, 270 

Importance of Harmony of Colors in Dishes, Linen, 

and Flowers 269 

Care of Dishes and Tray in Contagious Diseases... 271 

Tray Decoration 272 

Variety, Intervals of Feeding, and Quantity of 

Food to be Given 273, 274 

A Plan for the Preparation of an Invalid's 

Breakfast 278 



The Feeding op Children 

Ways in which a Child may be Supplied with Food. 280 

Artificial Feeding 280 

Comparison of the Composition of Cow's and Human 

Milk 281 

Buying, Care, and Sterilization of Cow's Milk... 281, 284 
Mellin's Food and other Attenuants 283, 290, 291 



CONTENTS vii 

PAGE 

Predigestion 283, 284 

Bacterial Poisons in Milk 285, 286 

Apparatus for Sterilizing Milk 287 

Care of Feeding-bottles 287 

Use of Condensed Milk 288 

Preserved Milk 289 

Farinaceous Foods, Mellin's Food, Malted Milk, 

etc 289,290 

Amount of Food for each Meal — Dilution of — 

Manner of Giving 293 

Temperature of Food when Given, and Intervals of 

Feeding 294 

General Rules for Feeding 294 

For the First Week 295 

After the First Week and until the Sixth Wekk 295 

From the Sixth Week to the Sixth Month 296 

From the Sixth to the Tenth Month 297 

From the Tenth to the Twelfth Month 298 

From the Twelfth to the Eighteenth Month . . 299 

After Eighteen Months 299 

Foods to be Carefully Avoided 300 



District Nursing 

District Nursing 301 

To Make a Fire 302 

To Wash Dishes 303 

Sweeping and Dusting 303 

Bills of Fare for Saturday, Sunday, Monday, 
and Tuesday: 

In May 304-308 

In September 308-310 

In January 310-313 



Literature 

A List of Books on the Chemistry of Foods, Bacte- 
riology, Nutrition, Health, Practical Cooking, 
and Allied Subjects, useful for Reference . . . 313 

Charts of the Composition of Various Foods for 

Use in a Cooking-school 314 

Apparatus for Furnishing a Cooking-school 315 



INTEODUCTION 

THE work of the nurse is to care for her patient, 
to watch, to tend, and to nurture him in such 
a way that he shall gain and maintain sufficient 
strength to overcome disease, that he may finally be 
restored to a state of health. Her greatest allies in 
this work consist in the proper hygienic surround- 
ings of good air, warmth, cleanliness, and proper 
nourishment. 

The most scrupulous cleanliness in the care and 
preparation of food is an important point in her 
work, and practically to appreciate this, some know- 
ledge of bacteriology is necessary, for the various fer- 
mentative and putrefactive changes (often unnoticed) 
which take place in both cooked and uncooked foods 
are caused by the growth of microscopic forms of life. 
Most of us realize the necessity for removing all visi- 
ble impurities, but that is not enough ; we should also 
combat those unseen agents which are everywhere at 
work, in order that we may prevent their action upon 
food material or destroy the products of their growth. 
Often these products are of a poisonous nature, and 
cause grave physical disturbances when they occur in 
our foods. When such knowledge is more general, we 
shall have arrived at a state of progress in the care 
and preparation of foods not yet universally reached. 

The indications at present are that nothing of im- 
portance will be done to change for the better the 



2 INTKODUCTION 

existing methods of housekeeping, until housekeep- 
ers are educated in the science of household affairs. 
They should comprehend (1) that the atmosphere is 
an actual thing ; that it has characteristics and prop- 
erties like other actual things ; that it is a necessity 
of life, and may be made a medium for the transmis- 
sion of disease ; and that it is as necessary that it 
should be kept clean as the floor, the table, or the 
furniture; (2) that food is a subject which may be 
studied and mastered like any other subject; that the 
changes it undergoes in its care and preparation are 
governed by fixed laws; (3) they should have a 
knowledge of heat in order to appreciate the effects of 
temperature on different food materials, to regulate 
the ventilation of their houses, and to control fires 
wisely and economically; and (4) they should have 
some knowledge of bacteriology, that milk and water, 
flesh, fruit, and vegetables may be kept, or rendered, 
absolutely free from disease-giving properties, and 
that perfect cleanliness may be exercised in preparing 
all materials that enter the body as nutrients. 

It is not the intention to imply that all micro- 
organisms produce injurious effects wherever they 
are found ; on the contrary, they are as essential to 
man's existence as are the higher forms of life; but 
often they seriously, even fatally, interfere with that 
existence, and in order to discriminate and to combat 
the evil a knowledge of their ways and modes of life 
is essential. 

A Harvard professor is credited with saying that 
no man could be a gentleman without a knowledge of 
chemistry; and forthwith all the students took to 
chemistry, for all wanted to be gentlemen. Would 
that somebody would authoritatively declare that no 
woman could be a lady without a knowledge of the 
chemistry of the household — what a glorious prospect 



INTRODUCTION 3 

would there be opened for the future health of the 
nation ! 

We read in history that after a grand medieval 
repast the bones and refuse of the feast were thrown 
under the table and left to decay. The scourges 
which have swept over Europe in past centuries we 
know, to-day, were not visitations of Providence, but 
were simply the result of natural causes, due to igno- 
rance of all hygienic laws on the part of the people. 
Compared with the barbarians of old, in these matters, 
we are a civilized people; compared with the possibili- 
ties of the future, we are still little more than savages. 

The ideal life is one in which there shall be no sick- 
ness except from accident or natural causes. When 
we have mastered the laws of hygiene, then will such 
life be possible. Meanwhile, with sickness always in 
our midst, we should keep the ideal ever before us, 
and endeavor by all means to restore suffering hu- 
man beings to a perfect state of health. A sound 
body is a material thing, prosaically nourished by 
material substances, which produce just as exact re- 
sults in its chemical physiology as if those substances 
entered into combination in the laboratory of the 
chemist. The cooking of food should be governed 
by exact laws which for the most part as yet re- 
main undemonstrated. It is a foregone conclusion 
that many young women fail in their first attempts 
at cooking; that they do so is not surprising, for 
not only are their friends unable to teach them, but 
the majority of books on the subject furnish no 
intelligible aid. 1 The science of cookery is still in 
the empirical stage. 

Even among experienced housekeepers there is 
not enough knowledge of the nature of foods and 
their proper combinations; the result is a great deal 

I No table exceptions nre the " Boston Cook Book," and " The Century 
Cook Book." 



4 INTRODUCTION 

of unwholesome cookery and the consequent injury 
and waste which must follow. Dislike for the work 
is usually due to want of success, and failure is attrib- 
uted to ill luck, poor materials, the fire, or any cause 
but the true one — which is ignorance of the subject. 
Of course good dishes cannot be made out of poor 
materials, but too often poor dishes are made out of 
good materials. 

The systematic teaching of the subject of house- 
hold affairs cannot fail of good results. Especially 
is this true in the case of the nurse, who will need at 
all times to exercise care and wisdom in the choice of 
food for the sick, to avoid the use of injurious sub- 
stances, and to select that which is perfectly whole- 
some and suited to the needs and condition of each 
individual. 

It may be said that most women can prepare a 
fairly satisfactory meal for those who are well, but 
very few are able to do the same for the sick. 

Count Rumford says : "I constantly found that the 
richness or quality of a soup depended more upon 
the proper choice of ingredients than upon the quan- 
tity of solid nutrient matter employed ; much more 
upon the art and skill of the cook than upon sums 
laid out in the market.' 7 This is equally true of other 
dishes than soup. The skill to develop the natural 
flavors of a food, to render it perfectly and thoroughly 
digestible, to convert it into a delicate viand, cannot 
be acquired in a haphazard way. Cooking cannot 
be done by guesswork. There are right and wrong 
methods in the kitchen as well as in the laboratory, 
and there is no doubt that the awakening interest in 
the subject of domestic science generally is neither 
an accident nor a whim, but the result of a necessity 
for better ways of living. We live different lives 
from those of our grandfathers before the days of the 



INTRODUCTION 5 

steam-engine, electricity, the telegraph, and the tele- 
phone. Now much more energy is needed to meet 
each day's demand than was required a hundred years 
ago, and so, greater care is necessary in the choice 
of what we eat. When the food does not supply 
the material to meet the demand, the whole being 
suffers. 

A course of study in cooking taken by the nurses 
of a hospital, while they are still pupils, is valuable 
for their present and future work. A nurse with the 
information that such a course should give, will be able 
to carefor the feeding of her patients more wisely, 1 will 
see the necessity for variety, will learn to avoid suspi- 
cious substances, such as fermented meat or fish, im- 
pure milk, etc., and will put forth every effort to Becnre 
that which is appetizing and wholesome, and suited to 
the needs of those in her care. She will more easily 
exercise patience and forbearance with the idiosyncra- 
sies of the sick in regard to articles of diet, knowing 

that these are usually the Symptoms of disease. The 

proper modes of caring for milk, eggs, oysters, and 
other perishable foods, the practice of economy in the 
use of wines, cocoa, and like costly substances, and an 
appreciation of the value of food materials in general, 
are some of the points which she will have learned. 

She will not forget that cleanliness in the kitchen 
in the preparation of all food, and in the washing of 
dishes, towels, waste-pails, sinks, and all receptacles 
in which easily decomposing substances are kept, 
means protection against many evils. The little 
knowledge of bacteriology that it is possible to give 
in a course in cooking, will enable her to understand 
that many animal foods, such as oysters, fish, and lob- 

i Although in some hospitals it is not practicable for a nurse to do 
much cooking for her patients, she lias the control and distribution of 
the food which is prepared. 



6 INTRODUCTION 

sters, are extremely prone to decay, and, although 
apparently good, may be partially decomposed be- 
cause of bacterial growth, which has produced such 
changes in them as to render them suspicious arti- 
cles of diet. She will, therefore, always endeavor to 
have such food alive if possible, or at least fresh, and 
to keep it in such conditions of temperature as shall 
preserve it in a wholesome state. 

The actual practical knowledge of how a certain 
number of dishes should be made has, of course, its 
value; but it is not the only consideration which 
should enter into the teaching of cookery. One of 
the most important points in all such work is the rec- 
ognition in certain cases of the necessity for particu- 
lar dishes, and the reasons for, and the value of, their 
ingredients. Why one kind of food is better for one 
person and a different kind for another is, without 
doubt, an essential point in all such study. 

A system depleted by disease, exhausted by long- 
continued illness, is an exceedingly delicate instrument 
to handle. It requires the greatest wisdom and good 
judgment on the part of physician and nurse to 
restore a patient to health without a lingering con- 
valescence. There is no doubt that the period of 
convalescence may be much shortened by the wise ad- 
ministration of food, and that the subsequent health 
of the patient may be either made or marred by the 
action of the nurse in this respect. 



PART I 
EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



PART I 
EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

PREPARATION OF FOOD 

Digestibility. There are comparatively few kinds 
of food that can be eaten uncooked. Various fruits, 
milk, oysters, eggs, and some other things may be 
eaten raw, but the great mass of food materials must 
be prepared by some method of cooking. All the com- 
mon vegetables, such as potatoes, turnips, carrots, 
beets, and the different grains, such as rice, wheat, 
corn, oats, etc., neither taste good nor can they be 
digested until their starch, cellulose, and other con- 
stituents have been changed from their compact form 
by the action of heat and a solvent. Some one has 
spoken of cooking as a sort of artificial digestion, 
by which nature is relieved of a certain amount of 
work which it would be very difficult, if not impos- 
sible, for her to perform. 

Flavors. The necessity of cooking to develop, or to 
create, a palatable taste is important. The flesh of 
fowl is soft enough to masticate, but only a person on 
the verge of starvation could eat it until heat has 
changed its taste and made it one of the most savory 
and acceptable of meats. Coffee also well illustrates 
this point. When coffee is green — that is, unbr owned 
— it is acrid in taste, very tough, even horny in consis- 
tency, and a decoction made from it is altogether un- 



10 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

pleasant. But when it is subjected to a certain de- 
gree of heat, for a certain time, it loses its toughness, 
becomes brittle, changes color, and there is developed 
in it a most agreeable flavor. This flavoring property 
is an actual product of the heat, which causes chem- 
ical changes in an essential oil, and without any doubt 
other substances, contained in the bean . Heat changes 
the odor and taste as well as the digestibility of food. 
Effects of Gold. Some foods are better for bein g cold ; 
for example, butter, honey, salads, and some fruits. 
Sweet dishes as a rule are improved by a low tempera- 
ture. The flavor of butter is very different and very 
much finer when cold than when warm. It is abso- 
lutely necessary to keep it cool in order to preserve 
the flavor. 



CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL CHANGES 

Chemical Changes. Since many of the changes which 
cooking produces in the different food materials are 
of a chemical nature, it is well to consider what con- 
stitutes a chemical process. This idea may perhaps 
be best conveyed by a few experiments and illustra- 
tions, the materials for which may be easily obtained. 

Exp. with Cream of Tartar and Bicarbonate of Soda. 

Mix two teaspoons of cream of tartar with one of bicarbon- 
ate of soda, in a little warm water. A union of the two sub- 
stances follows and they neutralize each other ; then the 
cream of tartar is no longer acid, and the soda is no longer alka- 
line. Owing to the power of chemical affinities a separation or 
breaking up of these compounds takes place, and new sub- 
stances, carbonic acid and roclidle salts, are formed out of their 
constituents. The effervescence which is seen is caused by the 
escape of the carbonic acid. 

Exp. with Hydrochloric Acid and Soda. Put a few drops 
of chemically pure hydrochloric acid into a little water; then 
add soda. A violent effervescence will follow. Continue putting 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 11 

in soda until this ceases, when the reaction should be neutral. 
Test it with litmus-paper. If it turns blue litmus-paper red, it 
is acid; if red litmus-paper blue, it is alkaline. Add acid or 
soda, whichever is required, until there is no change produced 
in either kind of litmus-paper. The results of this experiment 
are similar to those in the first one, namely, carbonic acid and a 
salt. In this case the salt is sodium chlorid or common salty 
which is in solution in the liquid. Evaporate the water, when 
salt crystals will be found. 1 

Oxid of Iron. A piece of iron when exposed to the weather 
becomes covered with a brownish-yellow coating, which does 
not look at all like the original metal. If left long enough it 
will wholly disappear, being completely changed into the yel- 
lowish substance, which is oxid of iron, a compound of oxy- 
gen and iron, commonly called iron rust. 

Burning of Coal. A piece of coal burns in the grate and is 
apparently destroyed, leaving do residue except a little ashes. 
The carbon and hydrogen of the OOal have united with the oxy- 
gen of the air, the products being water and the invisible gas, 
carbonic acid (/as, both of which escape through the chimney. 

Formation of Water. Water is formed by t he union of two 
invisible gases, hydrogen and oxygen. It bears no resemblance 
whatever to either of them. Its symbol is 1 !._,( ). 

All these are examples of chemical changes. 

Definition of Chemical Change. Chemical changes 
or processes may be defined as those close and inti- 
mate actions amongst the particles of matter by 
which they are dissociated or decomposed, or by 
which new compounds are formed, and involving 
a complete loss of identity of the original substance. 

Physical Changes. Mix a teaspoon of sugar with an equal 
amount of salt ; the sugar is still sugar, and the salt remains 
salt; and they may each be separated from the mixture as such. 

Water when frozen is changed from a liquid to a solid; its 
chemical composition, however, remains unchanged. 

Water converted into steam by heat is changed from a liquid 

1 Carbonic acid is composed of one part of carbon and two parts of 
oxygen. Its symbol is CO,. One volume of hydrogen united with one 
volume of ohlorin forms hydrochloric acid, ITC1. Common salt, or so- 
dium chlorid, is composed of one part sodium and one part chlorin. 
Symbol, NaCl. 



12 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

to a gas, but chemically there is no difference between the one 
and the other. Steam, water, and ice are forms of the same sub- 
stance, the difference being physical, not chemical, and caused 
by a difference in temperature. 

Lead melted so that it will run, and the solid lead of a bullet, 
are the same thing. 

These illustrate physical changes. 

Definition. When substances are brought together 
in such a way that their characteristic qualities re- 
main the same, the change is called physical. It is less 
close and intimate than a chemical change. The trans- 
ition from one state into another is also frequently 
only a physical change, as is seen in the transforma- 
tion of water into steam, water into ice, etc. 



ELEMENTS 

One feature of the work of the chemist is to sepa- 
rate compound bodies into their simple constituents. 
These constituents he also endeavors to dissociate; 
and if this cannot be done by any means known to 
him, then the thing must be regarded as a simple 
substance. Such simple bodies are called elements. 

Definition. An element then may be defined as a 
simple substance, which cannot by any known pro- 
cess be transformed into anything else ; that is, no 
matter how it is treated, it still remains chemically 
what it was before. Gold, silver, copper, iron, plati- 
num, carbon, phosphorus, calcium, oxygen, hydrogen, 
nitrogen, and chlorin are examples of elements. Once 
it was believed that there were but four elements in 
the world — earth, air, fire, and water. Then it was 
learned that these were not elements at all in the 
chemical sense in which we use the term to-day. At 
present sixty-eight bodies are admitted to be simple 
primary substances. Some of these may in the future 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 13 

be proved to be compounds. Sulphur is at present in 
the doubtful list. 

Oxygen. Oxygen is an element. It is an invisible 
gas, without taste or smell. It is the most abundant 
substance in the world, and an exceedingly active 
agent, entering into nearly all chemical changes and 
forming compounds with all known elements except 
one — fluorin. It is a necessity of life and of combus- 
tion. 1 It constitutes about two thirds of the weight 
of our bodies and one fifth of the weight of the air. 

Hydrogen. Hydrogen is a gas. It is the lightest 
substance known. It unites with oxygen to form 
water, and, as will be seen later, enters into the com- 
position of the human body. 3 

Nitrogen. Nitrogen is also a gas, but, unlike oxygen, 
is an inactive element. It supports neither fire nor 
life. It is not poisonous, however, for we breathe it 
constantly in the atmosphere, where its office is to 
dilute the too active oxygen. A person breathing it 
in a pure state dies simply from lack of oxygen. 

Carbon. Carbon is a solid and an important and 
abundant element. It is known under three forms : 
diamond, graphite, and charcoal. The diamond is 
nearly pure carbon. Graphite (the " black-lead " of 
lead-pencils), coal, coke, and charcoal are impure forms 
of it. Carbon is combustible; that is, it burns or 
combines with oxygen. In this union carbonic acid 
is formed, and there is an evolution of heat, and 
usually, if the union be rapid and intense enough, of 
light. It is the valuable element in fuels, and in the 
body of man it unites with the oxygen of the air, 
yielding heat, to keep the body warm, and energy or 

i Oxygen is often called the supporter of combustion, but it is no 
more so than the carbon and hydrogen of fuels, since they are neces- 
sary for a fire. 

2 Hydrogen is 14.44 times lighter than air. 



14 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

muscular strength for work (Prof. Atwater). The 
carbonic acid formed in the body is given out by 
the lungs and skin. 

Other Elements. There are many other elements 
about which it would be interesting to note some- 
thing, such as calcium and phosphorus (found abun- 
dantly in the bones), magnesium, sulphur, sodium, 
iron, etc. Samples of these may be obtained to show to 
pupils, and descriptions given and experiments made, 
at the discretion of the teacher. Of the four most 
abundant elements of the body and of food, — oxygen, 
carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen, — it is extremely im- 
portant that some study be made, and if the apparatus 
can be procured, that it be of an experimental nature 
rather than simply descriptive. 1 

AIR 

Air is made up principally of two elements, nitro- 
gen and oxygen. It also always contains vapor of 
water, carbonic acid, and argon. Its average com- 
position is as follows : 



Nitrogen 78.49% 

Oxygen 20.63% 



Aqueous Vapor . 84% 

Carbonic Acid 04% 

Argon un estimated 



These are mixed together, not chemically united. 
Oxygen and nitrogen do unite chemically, but not in 
the proportions in which they exist in the air. Nitrous 
Oxid (N 2 0), sometimes called "Laughing Gas," is 
one of the compounds of nitrogen and oxygen. 

FIRE 

Exp. with a Candle. Take a tallow candle, and by means 
of a lighted match raise its temperature sufficiently high to 
start an action between the carbon in the candle and the oxygen 

i See Eliot and Storer's " Chemistry," the revised edition, edited by 
Nichols, and the " Elementary Text-hook of Chemistry," by Mixter. 



EXPLANATOKY LESSONS 15 

of the air; in other words, light the caudle. A match is com- 
posed of wood, sulphur, and phosphorus. The latter is a sub- 
stance which unites with oxygen very easily ; that is, at a low 
temperature. By friction against any hard object, sufficient heat 
is aroused to effect a union between the phosphorus of a match 
and the oxygen of the surrounding air ; the flame is then con- 
veyed to the sulphur, or the heat thus generated causes a union 
between it (the sulphur) and the oxygen, sulphur burning some- 
what less freely than phosphorus ; this gives enough heat to ignite 
the wood, and with its combustion we get sufficient heat to light 
the candle, or to start a chemical union between the combus- 
tible portion, carbon chiefly, of the candle and the oxygen of 
the air. Allow the candle to burn for a time, then put over it 
a tall lamp-chimney; notice that the flame grows long and dim. 
Next place on the top of the chimney a tin cover, leaving a 
small opening, and make an opening into the chimney from be- 
low, with a pin or the blade of a knife placed between it and 
the table ; note that the candle burns dimly. Then exclude the 
flow of air by completely covering the top; in a moment, as 
soon as the oxygen inside the chimney is consumed, the candle 
will go out. 

This shows (1) that air (oxygen is the active agent) is 
necessary to cause the candle to burn ; (2) that by 
regulating the draft or flow of air the iutensity of 
the combustion may be increased or diminished ; (3) 
that by completely excluding air the candle is ex- 
tinguished. This experiment with the candle illus- 
trates the way in which coal is consumed in a stove. 
By opening the drafts and allowing the inflow of 
plenty of oxygen, combustion is increased; by par- 
tially closing them it is diminished, and by the com- 
plete exclusion of air burning is stopped. 

The products of burning coal are chiefly carbonic 
acid and a small amount of ash. Twelve weights of 
coal, not counting the ash, will unite with thirty-two 
weights of oxygen, giving as a result forty-four weights 
of carbonic acid. Accompanying the union there is an 
evolution of light and heat. The enormous amount 
of carbonic acid given out daily from fires is taken 



16 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

up by plants and used by them for food. In the 
course of ages these plants may become coal, be con- 
sumed in combustion, and, passing into the air, thus 
complete the cycle of change. 

Fuel and Kindlings. The common fuels are coal, 
coke, wood, gas, coal-oil, and peat. For kindling, 
newspaper is good because, being made of straw 
and wood-pulp, it burns easily, and also because 
printers 7 ink contains turpentine, which is highly 
inflammable. 

COMPOSITION OF THE BODY 

Before entering upon the study of foods it is well 
to cousider the composition of the human body, that 
some idea of its chemical nature may be gained. In 
the United States National Museum at Washington 
may be found some interesting information on this 
subject. From there much that is contained in the 
next two pages is taken. 

A complete analysis of the human body has never 
been made, but different organs have been examined, 
and chemists have weighed and analyzed portions of 
them, and from such data of this nature as could be 
obtained, estimates of the probable composition of the 
body have been calculated. Thirteen elements united 
into their compounds, of which there are more than 
one hundred, form it. 

The following table gives the average composition 
of a man weighing 148 pounds. 

Oxygen 92.4 Sulphur 24 

Carbon 31.3 Chlorin 12 

Hydrogen 14.6 Sodium 12 

Nitrogen 4.6 Magnesium 04 

Calcium 2.8 Iron 02 

Phosphorus 1.4 Fluorin 02 

Potassium 34 Prof. Atwater. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



17 



It will be seen from this that oxygen, carbon, hy- 
drogen, and nitrogen constitute nearly the whole, the 
other elements being in very small proportions. 



PRINCIPAL CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS IN 
THE BODY 

The following interesting table, obtained at the 
National Museum, gives the principal compounds of 
the body. Some of the more rare organic compounds 
are omitted. 

Water: — A compound of oxygen and hydrogen. 



Protein 
Compounds, 

composed 

mainly of 

Carbon, 

Oxygen, 
Hydrogen, 
Nitrogen. 



' Myosin and syntonin of muscle 
Albuminoids (sometimes called "muscle 

or < fibrin"). 

Proteidi. Albumen of blood and milk. Ca- 
sein of milk. 

f Collagen of bone and ~) which 

•— * H=ft - -* \J2L 

I lage, gristle, J fo 

Hemoglobin. \ The red coloring matter of blood. 



■■ 



Fats, 

composed 
mainly of 

Carbon, 

Oxygen, 

Hydrogen, 



Neutral 

Fats. 



Complex 

Fats, 

containing ^ 

phosphorus 

^ and nitrogen. 



Stearin, 



Palmitin, 
Olein, etc. 

Protagon, 
Lecithin, 
Cerebri n. 



These make up the 
bulk of the fat of 
the body. 

They are likewise 
the chief constit- 
uents of tallow, 
lard, etc. 



Found chiefly in 
the brain, spinal 
cord, nerves, etc. 



18 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



Carbohy- 
drates, 

composed 

of 

Carbon, 

Oxygen, 

Hydrogen. 



Mineral 

Salts. 



fG-lycogen, " animal starch." Occurs in the 

liver and other organs. 
Inosite, " muscle sugar." Occurs in various 

organs. 
Lactose, " milk sugar." Occurs in milk. 
Cholesterin. Occurs in brain, nerves, and other 

organs. 



Phosphate of lime, or calcium 
phosphate. 

Carbonate of lime, or calcium 
carbonate. 

Fluorid of calcium, or calcium 
fluorid. 

Phosphate of magnesia, or mag- 
nesium phosphate. 

Phosphate of potash, or potas- 
sium phosphate. 

Sulphate of potash, or potas- 
sium sulphate. 

Chlorid of potassium, or po- 
tassium ehlorid. 

Phosphate of soda, or sodi- 
um phosphate. 

Sulphate of soda, or sodium 
sulphate. 

Chlorid of sodium, or sodium 
chlorid. 



Occurs chiefly 
in bones and 
teeth, though 
found in 
other organs. 



Distributed 
through the 
body in the 
blood, mus- 
cle, brain, 
and other 
organs. 



Now, since the body is composed of these sub- 
stances, our food, including air and water, should 
contain them all in due proportion, that the growth, 
energy, and repair of the body may be healthfully 
maintained. 



THE FIVE FOOD PRINCIPLES 



For convenience of comparison foods may be di- 
vided into five classes : Water, Protein, Fats, Carbo- 
hydrates, Mineral Matters. 

Some scientists include air in the list, but it has 
been thought best in this work to speak of it sepa- 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 19 

lately as the greatest necessity of life, but not in the 

sense of a direct nutrient. 

An average composition of three of the principles 

is as follows : 

r Carbon 53 

Pt*otftn J H y dr °g en 7 

FR0TEIN 1 Oxygen 24 

I Nitrogen 16 

{Carbon 76.5 

Hydrogen 12 

Oxygen 11.5 

Nitrogen 

r Carbon 44 

_ Hydrogen 6 

Carbohydrates. A ^ ge * 50 

I Nitrogen 

It will be seen from the above that the protein 

compounds contain nitrogen; the fats and carbo- 
hydrates do not. 

WATER 



We will now consider the first of the food prin- 
ciples — water. Water is one of the necessities of 
life. A person could live without air but a few min- 
utes, without water but a few days. It constitutes 
by weight three fifths of the human body, and enters 
largely into all organic matter. Water is an aid to 
the performance of many of the functions of the body, 
holding in solution the various nutritious principles, 
and also acting as a carrier of waste. It usually con- 
tains foreign matter, but the nearer it is to being 
pure the more valuable it becomes as an agent in the 
body. Ordinary hydrant, well, or spring water may 
be made pure by filtering and then sterilizing it. 

Exp. Put a little water into a test-tube, and heat it over the 
flame of an alcohol-lamp. In a short time tiny bubbles will appear 



20 EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 

on the sides of the glass. These are not steam, as maybe proved 
by testing the temperature of the water ; they are bubbles of 
atmospheric gases which have been condensed in the water 
from the air; they have been proved to be nitrogen, oxygen, 
and carbonic acid, but as they do not exist in the water in the 
same proportions as in the air, they are not called air, but at- 
mospheric gases. Continue the heating, and the bubbles will con- 
tinue to form. After a while, very large bubbles will appear at 
the bottom of the tube ; they increase rapidly and rise toward 
the top ; some break before reaching it, but as the heat becomes 
more intense others succeed in getting to the surface, — there they 
break and disappear. If the water now be tested with a ther- 
mometer, it will be found to have reached 212° Fahrenheit or 
100° Centigrade, provided the experiment be tried at or near 
the level of the sea. 

Steam. The large bubbles are bubbles of steam, or 
water expanded by heat until its particles are so far 
apart that it ceases to be a liquid and becomes a gas. 
True steam is invisible ; the moisture which collects 
on the sides of the tube and is seen coming out at the 
mouth is partially condensed steam, or watery vapor. 
Watch a tea-kettle as it boils on a stove ; for the space 
of an inch or two from the end of the spout there 
seems to be nothing; that is where the true steam is; 
beyond that, clouds of what is commonly called steam 
appear ; they are watery vapor formed from the true 
steam by partial condensation which is produced by 
its contact with the cool air. 1 

Boiling-point of Water. Water boils at different tem- 
peratures, according to the elevation above the sea- 
level. In Baltimore it boils practically at 212° Fahr. ; 
at Munich in Germany at 209J°; at the city of Mex- 
ico in Mexico at 200° ; and in the Himalayas, at an 
elevation of 18,000 feet above the level of the sea, at 
180°. These differences are caused by the varying 
pressure of the atmosphere at these points. In Bal- 
timore practically the whole weight of the air is to be 

iMattieu Williams, in "Chemistry of Cookery." 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 21 

overcome. In Mexico, 7000 feet above the sea, there 
are 7000 feet less of atmosphere to be resisted ; conse- 
quently, less heat is required, and boiling takes place 
at a lower temperature. By inclosing a vessel of water 
in a glass bell, and exhausting the air by means of an 
air-pump, water may be made to boil at a temperature 
of 70° Fahr., showing that much of the force (heat) 
that is consumed in causing water to be converted into 
steam is required to overcome the pressure of the air. 
The foregoing illustrates the point that boiling water 
is not of invariable temperature; consequently, that 
foods which in some places are cooked in it may in 
other places be cooked in water that is not boiling, — 
in other words, that it is not ebullition which produces 
the change in boiling substances, but heat. 

Changes Produced in Water by Boiling. By boiling 
water for a moderate time the greater part of the at- 
mospheric gases is driven off. The flavor is much 
changed. We call it "flat"; but by shaking it in a 
carafe or other vessel so that the air can mingle with 
it, it will reacquire oxygen, nitrogen, and carbonic 
acid, and its usual flavor can thus be restored. 

Water which flows through soil containing lime is 
further changed by boiling. 

Exp. with Lime-water. Pour a little lime-water into a 
test-tube. With a small glass tube blow into it for a few min- 
utes, when it will become opaque ; continue the blowing for a few 
minutes more, when it will lose its cloudy appearance and be- 
come clear again. The following explains this: in the first 
place there was forced into the lime-water, from the lungs, air 
containing an excess of carbonic acid; this united with the 
lime in solution in the water and formed carbonate of lime. 
Carbonate of lime is insoluble in water which contains no car- 
bonic acid, or very little, 1 but will dissolve in water which if 
charged with it, and this is produced by the continued blowing. 

i The carbonic acid breathed in has united with the lime, thus leav- 
ing the water without excess of it. 



22 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

Now if this water "be freed of its excess of carbonic acid by boil- 
ing, the carbonate of lime will be freed from its soluble state, 
and will fall as a precipitate and settle on the sides of the vessel. 
From this we learn that water may be freed from carbonate of 
lime in solution in it by boiling. 

Organic Matter in Water. There is another class of 
impurities in water of vastly more importance than 
either the atmospheric gases or lime. These are the or- 
ganic substances which it always contains, especially 
that which has flowed over land covered with vegeta- 
tion, or that which has received the drainage from 
sewers. The soluble matter found in such water is 
excellent food for many kinds of micro-organisms 
which often form, by their multiplication, poisons 
very destructive to animal life. Or the organisms 
themselves may be the direct producers of disease, as 
for instance the typhoid fever bacillus, the bacillus of 
cholera, and probably others which occur in drinking- 
water. These organisms are destroyed by heat, so 
that the most valuable effect produced in water by 
boiling it is their destruction. Such water is, there- 
fore, a much safer drink to use than that which has 
not been boiled. Water should always be boiled if 
there is the slightest suspicion of dangerous impu- 
rities in the supply. 

Use of Tea and Coffee. This leads us to the thought 
that the extensive use of tea and coffee in the world 
may be an instinctive safeguard against these until 
recently unknown forms of life. The universal use 
of cooked water in some form in China is a matter 
of history. The country is densely populated, the 
sewage is carried off principally by the rivers, so that 
the danger of contracting disease through water must 
be very great, and it is probable that instinct or 
knowledge has prompted the Chinaman to use but 
very little water for food except that which has been 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 23 

cooked. Whatever the reason, the custom is a na- 
tional one. The every-day drink is weak tea made in 
a large teapot and kept in a wadded basket to retain 
the heat ; the whole family use it. The very poor 
drink plain hot water or water just tinged with tea. 

That tea and coffee furnish us each day with a cer- 
tain amount of wholesome liquid in which all organic 
life has been destroyed, remains a fact; they may 
be, in addition, when properly made and of proper 
strength, of great value on account of their warmth, 
good flavor, and invigorating properties. There is 
no doubt that it is of the greatest importance that tea 
and coffee be used of proper strength; for if taken too 
strong, disorders of the system may be produced, 
necessitating their discontinuance, and thus depriving 
the individual of a certain amount of warm and 
wholesome liquid. 

To Summarize. The effects produced in water by 
boiling which have been spoken of are : (1) the expul- 
sion of the atmospheric gases ; (2) the precipitation of 
lime when in solution; and (3) the destruction of 
micro-organisms. The most important points to re- 
member in connection with water are, that a certain 
amount each day is an absolute necessity of life, and 
that unless the supply be above suspicion it should 
be filtered and then sterilized. 

Filtration and Sterilization of Water. Filtration as 
a general thing is done by public authorities, but 
sterilization is not, and should be done when neces- 
sary by the nurse. For immediate use, simply boil- 
ing is said on good authority to be sufficient to 
destroy all organisms then in the water. Spores of 
organisms are, however, not killed by boiling, as they 
are very resistant to heat. Fortunately they are not 
common. As they do not develop into bacteria for 
some hours after the water has been boiled, they may 



24 EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 

be entirely gotten rid of by allowing them to develop 
and then destroying by a second boiling; but for 
all practical purposes, and under ordinary circum- 
stances, water is rendered safe for use by boiling it 
once. 1 Should the water be very bad, boil it in a 
jar plugged with cotton for half an hour three days 
in succession, keeping it meanwhile in a temperature 
of 70° or 80° Fahr., so that any spores of organisms 
which may be in it will have an opportunity to get 
into such a state of existence that they will be capa- 
ble of being killed by the next boiling. The third 
treatment is for the purpose of making sure of any 
that may have escaped the first and second. 



PROTEIN 

The second of the food principles, protein, is a 
complex and very important constituent of our food. 
The protein compounds differ from all others as to 
chemical composition by the presence of nitrogen ; 
they contain carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen, 
while the fats and carbohydrates are composed prin- 
cipally of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen, but no ni- 
trogen. The so-called extractives or flavoring proper- 
ties of meats are nitrogenous, and are consequently 
classed with the protein compounds. 2 

The body of an average person contains about 
eighteen per cent, of protein. The proteins of va- 
rious kinds furnish nutriment for blood and muscle, 
hence the term " muscle-formers," which is sometimes 
given them. They also furnish material for tendons 
and other nitrogenous tissues. When these are worn 
out by use, it is protein which repairs the waste. 

lAs a general thing water does not contain organisms that form spores. 

2 Atwater. 



EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 25 

Most of the valuable work upon the analysis of food 
has been done in Germany. From estimates made by 
chemists of that country it has been decided that the 
amount of protein in a diet should not fall below four 
ounces daily. This is to represent an allowance for a 
man of average weight doing an average amount of 
work, below which he cannot go without Loss in health, 
in work, or in both. Although protein is the most ex- 
pensive of all food materials, one should endeavor to 
use at least four ounces each day. .Meat, milk, eggs, 
cheese, fish of all kinds, but especially dried cud. 
wheat, beans, and oatmeal are all rich in this sub- 
stance. The protein compounds are divided into three 
classes : 



ALBUMINOIDS, (JKLATINOIDS, KXTKA* TIVKS. 

Albuminoids. The most perfect type of an albumi- 
noid is the white of v^g. It is a VISCOUS, glairy, thick 
fluid which occurs also in the flesh of meat as one <>f 
its juices, in fish, in milk, as well as in various other 
foods. It is soluble in cold water. 



Exp. Mix some white of egg in a tumbler with half a cup 
of cold water. As soon ;is the viscousness is destroyed it will 
be found to be completely dissolved. The lew white flakes 
which appear are a globulin. It is insoluble in alcohol. 

Exp. Pour upon some white of egg double its bulk of alco- 
hol. It will coagulate into a somewhat hard opaque mass. 

Heat also has the power of coagulating albumen. 
Coagulation of Albumen by Heat. Put into a test-tube 

some white of egg, and place the tube in a dish of warm water. 
Heat the water gradually over a iras-rlame or an alcohol-lam p. 
When the temperature reaches 134° Fahr. it will be seen that 



26 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

little white threads have begun to appear; continue the heating 
to 160°, when the whole mass becomes white and firm. Now re- 
move a part from the tube and test its consistency ; it will be 
found to be tender, soft, and jelly-like. Replace the tube in 
the dish of water and raise the heat to 200° Fahr. ; then take 
out a little more and test again; it will now be found hard, 
close-grained, and somewhat tough. Continue the heating, when 
it will be seen that the tenacity increases with rise of tempera- 
ture until at 212° Fahr., the boiling-point of water, it is a firm, 
compact solid. When heated to about 350°, white of egg be- 
comes so tenacious that it is used as a valuable cement for 
marble. 



These experiments illustrate a very important point 
in the cooking of albuminous foods. They show that 
the proper temperature for albumen is that at which 
it is thoroughly coagulated, but not hardened; that 
is, about 160° Fahr. Most kinds of meat, milk, eggs, 
oysters, and fish, when cooked with reference to their 
albumen alone, we find are also done in the best pos- 
sible manner with reference to their other constituents. 
For instance, if you cook an oyster thinking only of 
its albuminous juice, and endeavor to raise the tem- 
perature throughout all of its substance to, or near, 
1C0° Fahr., and not higher, you will find it most satis- 
factory as to flavor, consistency, and digestibility. 
The same is true of eggs done in all ways, and of 
dishes made with eggs, such as custards, creams, and 
puddings. With the knowledge that albumen coagu- 
lates at a temperature of 52° below that of boiling 
water, one can appreciate the necessity of cooking 
eggs in water that is not boiling, and a little experi- 
ment like the above will impress it upon the mind as 
no amount of mere explanation can possibly do. 

The cooking of eggs, whether poached, cooked in 
the shell, or in omelets, is of much importance, for 
albumen when hard, compact, and tenacious is very 
difficult of digestion ; the gastric juice cannot easily 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 27 

penetrate it ; sometimes it is not digested at all ; while 
that which is properly done — cooked in such a way 
that it is tender and falls apart easily — is one of the 
most valuable forms of food for the sick. 

Albumen should always be prepared in such man- 
ner as to require the least possible expenditure of 
force in digestion. Those who are ill cannot afford 
to waste energy. Whether they are forced to do so 
in the digestion of their food depends very much 
upon the person who prepares it. 

Advantage is often taken, in cooking, of the fact 
that albumen hardens on exposure to certain degrees 
of heat, to form protecting layers over pieces of broil- 
ing steak, roast meats, etc. It a piece of meal is 
placed in cold water to cook, it is evident, since albu- 
men is soluble in cold water, that some of it will be 
wasted. If the same piece is plunged into boiling 
water the albumen in its outer layers will be immedi- 
ately hardened, and form a sheath over the whole 
which will keep in the juices and the very important 
flavors. When broth or soup is made, we put the 
meat (cut into small pieces t<> expose a large extent 
of surface) into cold water, because we wi>h to draw 
out as much as possible the soluble matter ami the 
flavors. If, on the other hand, the meat is to be served 
boiled, and broth or soup is not the object, then this 
order should be reversed, and every effort made to pre- 
vent the escape of any of the ingredients of the meat 
into the liquid. 

In broiling steak, we sacrifice a thin layer of the 
outside to form a protecting covering over tin 1 whole 
by plunging it into the hottest part of the fire, so that 
the albumen will become suddenly hard and firm, and 
plug up the pores, thus preventing the savory juices 
from oozing out. More will be said on this subject 
in the recipes for cooking these kinds of foods. 



28 EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 

Gelatinoids. The second class of protein compounds 
comprises the gelatinoids, gelatin being their lead- 
ing constituent. It is found in flesh, tendons, carti- 
lage and bone ; in fact, it exists in all the tissues of 
the body, for the walls of most of the microscopic cells 
of which the tissues are composed contain gelatin. 

Exp. Boil a pound of lean meat freed from tendons, fat, 
and bone, in a pint of water for three hours ; then set the 
liquid away to cool. Jelly resembling calf s-foot jelly will be 
the result. The cell-walls of the flesh have been dissolved by 
the long-continued action of heat and liquid. This is common- 
ly called stock or glaze. 

Exp. Put a piece of clean bone into a dilute solution of hy- 
drochloric acid. In two or three days the acid will have acted 
upon the earthy matters in the bone to remove them, and gela- 
tin will remain. The average amount in bone is about thirty 
per cent. 

Calves' feet were formerly used for jelly because of 
the excess of gelatin which they contain. They were 
cooked in water for a long time and the liquid 
reduced by further boiling; it was then clarified, 
flavored, and cooled ; the result was a transparent, 
trembling jelly. The prepared gelatin of commerce, 
or gelatine, has now largely displaced this, for it is 
much more convenient to use, and less expensive. 

Extractives. The extractives or flavoring proper- 
ties of meats and other substances are usually classed 
with the protein compounds. Their chemical nature 
is not well understood. 



FATS 

Fixed and Volatile Oils. There are two classes of 
fats, called fixed oils Midi volatile oils. All kinds of 
fats good for food belong to the class of fixed oils. 
A volatile oil is one which evaporates away, like alco- 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 29 

hol or water, and leaves no residue. The fixed oils, 
at least most of them, will not do this; they do not 
vaporize even at very high temperatures, but they be- 
come dissociated or decomposed, — that is, their chem- 
ical structure is broken up before their boiling-point 
is reached. Volatile oils, on the contrary, are capable 
of being boiled and transformed into gases. Some 
one illustrates this by the changes which take place 
in water. When water is heated to 212° Fahr. it is 
converted into a gas, which on cooling below 212° 
returns to the liquid state again without loss. The 
essential oil, turpentine, if heated to 320° Fahr. ceases 
to be a liquid and becomes a gas, which on cooling 
becomes a liquid oil again without loss of weight. 
Other volatile oils are oil of cloves, oil of bitter 
almonds, orange and lemon oil, oil of cinnamon, 
bergamot, and patchouli. 

The boiling sometimes noticed in a pot of lard is 
owing to the presence in it of a little water which is 
very soon converted into steam, when the bubbling 
ceases, and after that the temperature of the fat 
rises rapidly, reaching in a short time four or live 
hundred degrees Fahrenheit, when a separation of 
its constituents takes place, and carbon is revealed as 
a black mass. 

Composition of Fats. Fats are hydrocarbons — that 
is, they are composed chiefly of carbon united with 
hydrogen and oxygen. They must not be confound- 
ed with the carbohydrates, which are always com- 
posed of carbon with the elements of water — that is, 
the proportion of hydrogen to oxygen is as two to 
one, — whereas in the hydrocarbons this is not the case. 
These elements enter into the compositions of fats as 
various fatty acids and glycerin ; the acids are not sour. 
as might be supposed from the name, but are called 
acids because they behave chemically toward bases 



30 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

as sour acids do, that is, they unite with them. The 
glycerin of commerce is obtained by decomposing 
fats. 

Fat in Milk. The white color of milk is given to 
it by minute globules of fat suspended in it. 

To prove this: Put a little milk into a bottle with a 
ground-glass stopper; pour upon it three times its bulk of 
ether and shake gently; let it stand for two or three days, 
when it will be found that the ether has dissolved the fat 
and left a semi-transparent yellowish white liquid resem- 
bling blood serum. By pipetting or carefully pouring off the 
ether, and evaporating it by placing the vessel containing it 
in a dish of warm water, clear oil will be obtained. Care 
must be taken not to put the ether near a flame or the fire, 
as it is highly inflammable, and an explosion might occur. 
Ether boils at 94.82° Fahr. 

The proportion of fat in milk is from 2.8 to 8 per 
cent. It varies in milk from different species of 
cows, and from the same species at different times, 
according to age, feeding, and other circumstances. 

Cream. When milk is allowed to stand without 
disturbance for a time the globules of fat, being lighter 
than water, rise to the surface and form cream. Cream 
is one of the most wholesome, palatable, and easily 
digested of fats. Butter is obtained by beating milk or 
cream in a churn until the little globules of fat break 
and stick together in a mass. 

Olive-Oil. Olive-oil is one of the most easily di- 
gested and palatable of fats. A genuine oil of the 
first quality is, in this country unfortunately, expen- 
sive, much of that sold under the name being adul- 
terated with cotton-seed oil, poppy-oil, and essence 
of lard. 1 

i The decline in the sardine trade during the last few years is accounted 
for by the fact that cotton-seed oil has so largely replaced olive-oil in 
the packing of these fish. People who once regarded them as a great 
delicacy no longer find them satisfying. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 31 

Cotton-seed oil has no especially bad flavor, but it 
is unpleasant and indigestible when used raw as in 
sardines aud salads. Its indigestible qualities are 
doubtless due to the presence of an aldehyde. 

Olive-oil of the best quality is almost absolutely 
without flavor. It is prepared in several grades : the 
first pressing from the fruit is the best, the second is 
fair, the third inferior, and there is sometimes a fourth 
known as refuse oil. For deep fat frying nothing is 
so good as olive-oil, but its costliness in this country 
excludes it from common use. 

The fat of the sheep and ox, after it has been ren- 
dered, and deprived of all membrane and fibers, is 
called fallow* The term is also applied to the fat of 
other animals, and to that of some plants, as baybeny- 
tallow, piny tallow, and others. The uncooked fat of 
any animal is called suet, but the name has come to 
be applied to the less easily melted kinds, which sur- 
round the kidneys or are in other parts of the loin. 
The fat which falls in drops from meat in roasting is 
called dripping. 



THE CARBOHYDRATES 

Starch. Starch is a substance found in wheat, corn, 
oats, and in fact in all grains, in potatoes, in the 
roots aud stems of many plants, and in some fruits. 
In a pure state it is a white powder such as is seen in 
arrowroot and corn-starch. Examined by a micro- 
scope this powder is found to be made up of tiny grains 
of different shapes and sizes, some rounded or oval, 
others irregular. Those of potato-starch are ovoid, 
with an outside covering which appears to be folded 
or ridged, and looks somewhat like the outside of an 
oyster-shell, although its similarity extends no further 



32 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



than appearance, as the little ridges are trne folds, and 
not overlapping edges. 

Size of Starch Grains. Starch grains vary in size ac- 
cording to the source from which the starch is ob- 
tained. Those of ground rice are very small, being 
about tooo of an inch in diameter; those of wheat are 
y-^oo of an inch, and those of potato 3^0 of an inch. 

Starch is a carbohydrate, being composed of six 
parts of carbon, ten of hydrogen, and five of oxygen. 
Its symbol is C 6 H 10 O 5 . It is insoluble in water, but 
when the water is heated, the grains seem to absorb it ; 
they increase in size, the ridges or folds disappear, 
and when the temperature reaches 140° Fahr. or a 
little.over, they burst, and the contents mingle with 
the liquid forming the well-known paste. 

Test for Starch. Mix a teaspoon of starch with a cup of 
cold water and boil them together for a few minutes until a 
paste is formed ; then set it aside to cool. Meanwhile make a 
solution of iodine by putting a few flakes into alcohol, or use 
that which is already prepared, and which may be obtained at 
any pharmacy. Add a drop of this solution to the paste mix- 
ture; it will immediately color the whole a rich dark blue. 
This is known as the "iodine test/' and is a very valuable one 
to the chemist, for by means of it the slightest trace of starch 
can be detected. 

Exp. with Arrowroot. Make a thin paste by boiling a little 
arrowroot and water together. When cool test it with a drop 
of the iodine solution. The characteristic blue color will be 
very strong, showing that arrowroot is rich in starch. 

Similar tests may be made with grated potato, 
wheat-flour, rice-flour, tapioca, and other starch-con- 
taining substances. Also powdered sugar, cream of 
tartar, and other substances may be tested, when it 
is suspected that they have been adulterated with 
starch. 

Although starch grains burst and form a paste 
with water at 140° Fahr., that is not the temperature 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



33 



at which it should be cooked for food, and the thick- 
ening which then takes place should not be con- 
founded, as often happens, with the true cooking of 
starch. In order to understand the difference be- 
tween the proper cooking of starch and the simple 
bursting of the grains, let us consider the changes 
which take place in starch when it is subjected to 
different degrees of heat, and also those which are 
produced in it during the process of digestion. All 
starch in food is changed into dextrine and then into 
sugar (glucose, C 6 H 12 6 ) in the process of digestion. 
Glucose is a kind of sugar, resembling cane-sugar, 
but it is not so sweet. 

Dextrine. Dextrine is a substance having the same 
chemical nature as starch, but differing in many of 
its properties. It may be described as a condition 
which starch assumes in the progress of its change 
into glucsoe. 

Exp. to show Dextrine. Carefully dry and then heat a little 
.starch to about 400° Fahr. Keep it at this temperature until it 
turns brown, or for ten minutes. Then mix it with water, when 
it will dissolve, forming a gummy solution. Starch will not do 
this. Test it with iodine ; no blue color will appear. The re- 
markable thing about the relation of dextrine to starch is that 
although they differ so much in properties they have the same 
elementary composition. 

The change of starch into dextrine is an important 
point in cooking, because starch cannot be assimilated 
until the conversion has taken place, either before or 
after it is eaten. Now it will be seen that unless this 
change is either produced or approached in the cook- 
ing of starch-containing foods, they are not prepared 
as well as it is possible to prepare them; also, that it 
is not possible to cause this change at a low tempera- 
ture; therefore 140° (the temperature at which the 
grains burst) should not be regarded as the cooking 



34 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

temperature of starch. It should be such a tempera- 
ture as shall actually convert it into dextrine, or at 
least change it to such an extent that it will be more 
easily converted into dextrine, and ultimately into 
sugar, by the digestive fluids. This should be as 
near 401° Fahr. as practicable, — not that a potato, 
or a loaf of bread, or a pudding will have all the 
starch in it changed when it is put into an oven of 
that temperature. It would not be possible, on ac- 
count of the water contained in each ; but that in the 
outside may be, and the preparation of the remainder 
will be better than at a lower temperature. 

There are other means of changing starch into dex- 
trine -than by heat, one of the most remarkable of 
which is diastase, a substance found in sprouting 
grains, which has the power to transform the starch 
stored in the grain by nature into soluble dextrine, in 
which form it can be taken up by the young plant for 
food. The crude starch could not thus be absorbed. 
The starch which we use as food is of no more value 
to us than it is to the young plant until it has been 
changed into dextrine or sugar. Now, if art outside 
of the body can accomplish what nature is otherwise 
forced to do in the alimentary canal, the body will be 
saved a certain amount of force, — a point of great im- 
portance, especially in the case of the sick or invalid, 
who can ill afford to waste energy. 

Starch constitutes half of bread, our "staff of life"; 
nearly all of rice, the staff of life in the East ; and the 
greater part of corn-starch, sago, arrowroot, tapioca, 
peas, beans, turnips, carrots, and potatoes. 

Arrowroot is the purest form of starch food known. 
Bice is richest in starch of all the grains. Tapioca is 
prepared from the root of a tropical plant ; it is first 
crushed and the grains washed out with water, then 
the whole is heated and stirred, thus cooking and 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 35 

breaking the starch grains, which on cooling assume 
the irregular rough shapes seen in the ordinary tapioca 
of commerce. Probably a part of the starch is con- 
verted into dextrine, which accounts for the peculiarly 
agreeable flavor which tapioca possesses. Mixed with 
the grains, as they are taken from the plant, is a very 
dangerous poison which, being soluble in water and 
volatile, is partially washed away and partially driven 
out by the heat, — in fact the heating is done for this 
purpose. Sago is principally starch. It is obtained 
from the pith of the BagO-palm. Imitations of both 
tapioca and sago are sometimes made from cheaper 
starches. 

Stm-eli may be converted into grape-sugar by treat- 
ing it with acids j that of corn is generally used for the 
purpose. Much of the glncose of commerce is made 
in this way. In the United States it is estimated that 
$10,000,000 worth is manufactured every year. It is 
used for table syrup, in brewing beer, in the adulter- 
ation of cane-sugar, and in confectionery. Honey is 
also made from it. The nutritive value of vegetables 
is due largely to the starch and sugar which they 
contain. 

In the economy of the body starch is eminently a 
heat producer. Pound for pound it does not give as 
much heat as fat, but owing to its great abundance 
and extensive use it, in the aggregate, produces 
more. (At water.) 

Starch is an abundant and easily digested form of 
vegetable food, but it is incapable of sustaining life. 
It contains none of the nitrogenous matter needed for 
the nutrition of the muscles, nerves, and tissues. In- 
deed, it is said on good authority that many an in- 
valid has been seriously injured in health by being 
fed upon this material alone. 



36 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

Sugar. There are many kinds of sugar, the most 
familiar of which is cane-sugar, or sucrose (C^H^On). 
It is obtained from the juices of various plants, for 
instance, sugar-cane, beet-root, the sugar-maple, and 
certain kinds of palms. By far the greatest amount 
comes from the sugar-cane. It is made by crushing 
the stalks of the plant (which somewhat resembles 
Indian corn) and extracting the sweet juice, which is 
then clarified and evaporated until, on cooling, crys- 
tals appear in a thick liquid; this liquid is molasses, 
and the grains or crystals are brown sugar. White 
sugar is obtained by melting this brown sugar in 
water, removing the impurities, and again evapo- 
rating in vacuum -pans, which are used for the pur- 
pose of boiling the liquid at a lower temperature than 
it could be boiled in the open air, thus avoiding the 
danger of burning, and otherwise preserving certain 
qualities of the sugar. Loaf-sugar is made by sepa- 
rating the crystals from the liquid by draining in 
molds ; and granulated sugar by forcing out the 
syrup in a centrifugal machine. The process of mak- 
ing beet-root sugar is similar. Sugar from maple sap 
is obtained by simply evaporating away the excess of 
water. In the East a considerable quantity of sugar 
is made from the juices of certain varieties of palm, 
especially the date-palm. Maple-sugar and palm- 
sugar are generally not purified. 

Sucrose dissolves readily in water. By allowing 
such a solution to stand undisturbed for a time until 
the water has disappeared, transparent crystals are 
obtained, known as rock candy. Again, sucrose melted 
at a temperature of 320° Fahr. forms, on cooling, a 
clear mass, called barley-sugar. Heated to 420° Fahr. 
dissociation of the carbon from the water of crystalli- 
zation takes place, the carbon appearing in its charac- 
teristic black color. This dark brown, sweetish-bitter 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 37 

syrup is called caramel. On cooling it forms a solid, 
which may be dissolved in water, and is used to color 
gravies, soups, beer, and so forth. 

Exp. with Sulphuric Acid. A very pretty experiment to 
show the separation of the water from the carbon may be made 
by treating a little sugar in sulphuric acid. Put a tablespoon 
of sugar in any vessel that will bear heat, a thin glass or stool 
cup. Pour over enough concentrated sulphuric acid to thorough- 
ly moisten it, let it stand for a few minutes, when it will be 
seen that the mass has changed color from white to a yellow- 
ish brown. The color increases in intensity until it is perfectly 
black, when the whole puffs and swells up. fumes are driven 
off, and a mass like a cinder remains. This is charcoal, or 
nearly pure carbon. 

The explanation is as follows: So strong is the 
affinity of the acid for the water that it breaks up the 

chemical combination between it and the carbon, 
unites with the water, and Leaves the carbon free. So 
intense is the chemical change thai an enormous 
amount of heat is evolved, — so much, in fact, that a 
considerable part of the water is vaporized, Leaving 
the more or less solid charcoal. The light color no- 
ticed during the first part of the union indicates that 
the chemical dissociation is just beginning, and that 
only a small amount of carbon has been set free. 

Glucose. Glucose or grape-sugar ((V,H 12 6 ) is one 
of the kinds of sugar found in grapes, peaches, and 
other fruits. It is about two and one half times less 
sweet than cane-sugar. It is manufactured on a large 
scale from the starch of corn. 

Lactose. Lactose or milk-sugar is the sugar found 
in the milk of the Mammalia. That of commerce 
comes chiefly from Switzerland, where it is made by 
evaporating the whey of cow's milk. For sweetening 
drinks for infants and for the sick, milk-sugar is said 
to be less liable to produce acid fermentation than 
cane-sugar, and also to be more easily digested. 



38 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



Sugar is a valuable nutrient, being very easily di- 
gested and absorbed. Cane-sugar is converted into 
glucose in the process of digestion, and after absorp- 
tion it is completely utilized in the body, furnishing 
heat and probably energy. 

Effects of Heat on Sugar. Sugar undergoes vari- 
ous changes, with different degrees of heat, by loss of 
the elements of water and dissociation. One of the 
most remarkable of these is seen in caramel sauce, 
which is a rich crimson-brown syrup generally sup- 
posed to contain foreign coloring matter, but which 
does not. It is made by melting sugar without water, 
and heating it until the desired hue and thickness are 
reached. Nothing is added, but something is taken 
away j that is, oxygen and hydrogen are driven out, 
with the result of change in both color and taste. 

In an article in " The Century Magazine n (No- 
vember, 1891) Prof. Atwater touches upon the sub- 
ject of the production of artificial foods from the 
crude materials of the earth, and states, among other 
things, that a sugar resembling fruit-sugar has been 
made artificially by synthesis, by Prof. Fischer of 
Wiirzburg, Germany. 



AIR 

Air is a gaseous elastic body which envelops the 
earth on every side, extending possibly two hundred 
miles from its surface, and becoming less and less 
dense as the distance from the earth increases. When 
pure it is tasteless and odorless. We really live at the 
bottom of an atmospheric ocean, and are pressed upon 
by its weight. At the sea-level the pressure upon 
every square inch of surface is equal to fifteen pounds. 

Atmospheric Pressure Variable. Atmospheric pres- 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 39 

sure diminishes and is constantly variable, according 
to the height above the sea-level. If we ascend into 
the air at 5000 feet, it is perfectly evident that the 
pressure from above has been greatly reduced from 
that at the point from which we started. This dimi- 
nution of pressure is often measured by the temper- 
ature at which water boils at different heights. 

Composition. An average composition of the at- 
mosphere has been previously stated. Besides nitro- 
gen and oxygen, it always contains water in the form 
of vapor, and carbonic acid. The amount of aqueous 
vapor in the air changes according to the tempera- 
ture; the amount of carbonic acid is also constantly 
variable. Air usually contains, in addition to these, 
traces of ammonia, organic matter which includes 
micro-organisms, ozone, salts of sodium, and other 
mineral matters in minute and variable quantities. 

Air in Motion. The atmosphere is almost always in 
motion. We feel it in the gentle breeze and the more 
forcible wind. If it moves at a slower rate than two 
and one half feet a second this motion is not notice- 
able. Motion in the air is caused by the unequal heat- 
ing of portions of it. If from any cause the atmosphere 
over a certain region becomes warm, it will expand 
(all bodies expand with heat), become lighter, and its 
tendency will be to move in the direction of least re- 
sistance, — that is, upward ; so we say heated air rises. 
Currents of cooler air will immediately flow in to 
take its place, and thus we have a breeze, a wind, or 
a gale, according to the velocity and force with which 
the currents move. It is upon a knowledge of these 
movements that the theory of ventilation is based. 
It is because of the constant motion of air-currents 
that out of doors, except in densely populated cities, 
air remains constantly pure. When poisonous gases 
and other impurities accumulate, winds scatter them 



40 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

far and wide until they are so diluted as to be harm- 
less ; or under some conditions they unite with other 
things and form new and simple substances of a 
harmless nature, while under others, if they are com- 
pounds, they may be decomposed or washed down to 
the surface of the earth again. 

Impurities. The chief chemical product of fires and 
of that slower combustion breathing is carbonic acid. 
Plants during the day, and under the influence of 
sunlight, take it up from the air for food, use the car- 
bon for their growth, thus freeing oxygen which man 
and the lower animals need. Thus is the balance most 
beautifully maintained. Plants use some oxygen. 

Air is purest over the sea and over wind-swept 
heights of land. It, however, always contains some 
foreign substances, and always micro-organisms ex- 
cept over mid-ocean. Even quite high strata of 
atmosphere are not free from microscopic forms of 
life, as has been shown in experiments made with hail 
at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1890 by Dr. Abbott. 
Large hailstones were washed in distilled and steril- 
ized water, and then melted, and cultures made from 
different layers ; in all of these organisms were found, 
showing that they extend into the air a long dis- 
tance from the earth. 1 

Impurities of various kinds are constantly passing 
into the air, but so vast is the expanse of the atmo- 
sphere as compared with the impurities daily thrown 
into it from the lungs of man and the lower animals, 
from fires, manufactories, and decomposing matter, 
that they quickly disappear. 

Air is the greatest or, as one writer says, the most 
immediate necessity of life. We could live without 

1 This is not the first instance of the discovery of organisms in hail ; 
but Dr. Abhott, if not the first, is one of the first bacteriologists to dem- 
onstrate the fact in this country. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 41 

it only a few seconds. We constantly use it, whether 
sleeping or waking, and perhaps this accounts in part 
for the utter carelessness and indifference which most 
people have for the quality of that which they breathe. 
Even those persons who know something of the 
nature of air, make but little effort to provide 
themselves with a constantly pure supply. 

Effects of Breathing Bad Air. If the effects of 
breathing bad air were immediate, there would then 
be an immediate remedy for the present total lack of 
any systematic means of ventilation in most houses. 
But the effects of breathing bad air are, like those of 
some slow and insidious poison, not noticeable at 
once, and often manifested under the name of some 
disease which gives no clue to the true cause. 

Dr. Van Rensselaer, in the Or ton Prize Essay on 
Impure Air and Ventilation, makes the statement 
that statistics show that of the causes of mortality the 
most important and farthest-reaching is impure air. 

Amount of Air Required for one Person. Sanitarians 
have agreed that each individual requires at least 
3000 cubic feet of air every hour. A room 10 x 15 x 20 
holds 3000 cubic feet of air, which should be changed 
once every hour in order that one individual shall 
have the required amount. If three persons are in 
the room, it must be changed three times. 

The effect of bad ventilation is well illustrated by 
the condition of the horses in the French army some 
years ago. With small close stables the mortality 
was 197 in every 1000 annually. The simple en- 
largement of the stables, and consequent increase of 
breathing-space, reduced the number in the course of 
time to 68 in every 1000, and later, from 1862 to 1866, 
with some attention paid to the air-supply, the number 
fell to 284 per 1000. 1 

i Parkes's " Practical Hygiene." 



42 EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 

Necessity for a Constant Supply of Pure Air. When 
we consider that the food we eat and digest cannot 
nourish the body until it has been acted upon by 
oxygen in the body, and that this action must be 
constant, never ceasing, it will help us to understand 
the necessity for a constant supply of air such as 
shall furnish us a due proportion of the life-giv- 
ing principle, oxygen, and which shall not contain 
impurities that interfere with its absorption. 

We take into the lungs a mixture of nitrogen, oxy- 
gen, and carbonic acid. We give out a mixture 
which has lost some of its oxygen, and gained in 
carbonic acid. Now, unless the amount of oxygen 
is what it should be, the blood will not gain from 
an inspiration the amount it should receive, conse- 
quently it will be but imperfectly purified and able 
but imperfectly to nourish the body. So the whole 
system suffers, and if a person for a long time con- 
tinues to breathe such an atmosphere, the condition 
of the body will become so reduced as to produce dis- 
ease. Even though in other ways one lives wisely, all 
the factors of health multiplied together cannot with- 
stand the one of impure air. We eat food three or 
four times daily. Some of us are very particular 
about its quality. We breathe air every instant of 
our lives, but generally we give but little considera- 
tion as to whether it is pure or impure. 

Ventilation. No attempt will be made here to ex- 
plain different devices for ventilation, but only to 
touch upon the principle it involves. Its objects are 
(1) to remove air which has been breathed once; (2) to 
remove the products of combustion, whether from fires, 
lamps, gas, or other sources; (3) to carry away all other 
substances which may be generated from any cause, 
in a room or building, as the impurities from man- 
ufacturing, those arising from decaying matter, 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



43 



and micro-organisms. In a climate where artificial 
warmth is necessary a part of the year, it is difficult 
to warm and ventilate a room at the same time, with- 
out causing unpleasant drafts ; but with some know- 
ledge of the necessity of ventilation, and of the prop- 
erties of air, one may in some measure work out 
a scheme of ventilation adapted to the circumstances 
in which he finds himself. 

There are always the doors and windows, which 
may be thrown wide open at intervals, and in many 
houses there are fireplaces. If a window be opened 
at the bottom at one side of a room, and another be 
opened at the top on an opposite side, a current of 
air will be established from the first window, passing 
through the room and out at the second. This plan 
will do very well in warm weather when the tempera- 
ture outside is about the same as that of the room, 
but it would be impracticable in cold weather. Then 
we may resort to the very simple plan of placing a 
board about eight or ten inches wide across the win- 
dow at the bottom and inside of the sash. Then 
when the lower half of the window is raised, a space 
is left between the upper and lower sashes, through 
which the air passes freely as it enters, and, being 
sent into the room in an upward direction, causes no 
draft. The board is for the purpose of closing the 
window below, and should fit quite close to the sash. 

Fireplaces are good, though not perfect, ventila- 
tors. Then there are the preventive measures, such as 
burning the gas or lamp low at night, avoiding oil- and 
gas-stoves, etc.; the latter are the worst possible means 
of heating rooms, for not only do they draw oxygen 
for burning from the air, but they give out the pollut- 
ing carbonic acid and other products of combustion, 
which in a coal- or wood-stove go up the chimney. 

A well-ventilated room should have an inflow of 



44 EXPLANATOBY LESSONS 

warm, pure air, and a means for the removal of the 
same after it has been used, the current being so con- 
trolled that, although the air is kept in motion, there 
is no perceptible draft. 

The plan for the heating and ventilation of the 
Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland, is a 
most admirable one. Air from out of doors is con- 
veyed by a flue into a chamber in the wall, in which are 
coils of pipe filled with hot water. The air in passing 
over these becomes warm, and, rising, passes into the 
room to be heated through a register. On the oppo- 
site side of the room is a chimney-like flue, run- 
ning "to the top of the building and containing 
two registers, by the opening and closing of which 
the movements of the air in the room can be con- 
trolled. The temperature is maintained by the tem- 
perature of the water in the pipes, and the rapidity 
of the flow. 1 

The ventilation by this method of heating is the 
most perfect known to the author, who has lived for 
two years in a building thus supplied with warmth 
and fresh air. The rooms were invariably comfortable 
as to temperature, and the air as invariably sweet and 
pure. 

MILK 

Milk is one of our most perfect types of food, con- 
taining water and solids in such proportions as are 
known to be needful for the nourishment of the body. 
A proof of this is seen in the fact that it is the only 
food of the young of the Mammalia during the time 
of their greatest growth. It contains those food prin- 
ciples in such amounts as to contribute to the rapid 

i For a detailed description of this method of heating and ventila 
tion, see the report of the Johns Hopkins Hospital for the year 1891. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 45 

formation of bone and the various tissues of the body, 
which takes place in infancy and childhood ; but after 
this growth is attained, and the individual requires 
that which will repair the tissues and furnish warmth 
and energy, milk ceases to be a complete food. 

Composition of Cow's Milk. The composition of 
cow's milk varies with the breed and age, care and 
feeding, of the animals. Cows which arc kept in foul 
air in stables all the year, and fed upon bad food 
such as the refuse from breweries and kitchens, give 
a quality of milk which is perhaps more to be dreaded 
than that from any other Source; for sin-h animals arc 
especially liable to disease, and are often infected with 
tuberculosis, pneumonia, and other fatal maladies. 
Cows are particularly susceptible t<> tuberculosis, and 
may convey it to human beings either in their milk 
or flesh. According to Dr. Miller, cow's milk contains 
the following ingredients : 

Water 87. 

Fat 4 

Sugar and soluble salts 5. 

Nitrogenous matter and insoluble salts :;. 

Another analysis is that of Uffelmann : 

Water 87 

Albuminoids 4.3% 

Fat 3.8 

Sugar :$.: 

Salts 6 

Characteristics. Milk from healthy, well-nourished 
cows should be of full white color, opaque, and with 

l Variations in the composition of cow's milk (300 analyses) : 

Minimum. Maximum. 

Albuminoids or Protein -2.0-4",, G.18% 

Fat 1.83 

Sugar 3.2c 5.67% 

Salts 50% .87% 

— KONIG. 



46 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



a slightly yellowish tinge sometimes described as 
" cream white." It should vary but slightly in com- 
position from the above analyses. The fat should 
not be less than 2.5%. The amount of fat may be 
easily determined with a Feser's lactoscope (Eimer 
and Amend, New York), directions for the use of 
which come with the instruments. It will generally 
vary from 3% to 4% in good milk. Should it fall 
below 2.5% the milk should be rejected as too poor for 
use. Such milk has probably been skimmed, or comes 
from unhealthy or poorly fed cows. 

The specific gravity of milk should be from 1.027 to 
1.033.- This may be found with a Quevenne's lactom- 
eter. If it falls below 1.027, one has a right to claim 
that the milk has been watered or that the cows are 
in poor condition. 1 

The reaction of good milk varies from slightly alka- 
line to slightly acid or neutral. That from the same 
cow will be different on different days, even under the 
same apparent conditions of care, varying from one to 
the other, probably because of some difference in the 
nature of the food she has eaten. However, if the 
reaction is decidedly alkaline, and red litmus-paper 
becomes a distinct blue, the milk is not good, and 
possibly the animal is diseased. Should the reaction 
be decidedly acid, it shows that the milk has been 
contaminated, either from the air by long exposure, 
or from the vessels which held it, with those micro- 
organisms which by their growth produce an acid, a 



i The following is the police order for milk, published in Darmstadt, 
1879: (1) All milk must have a specific gravity of 1.029-1.033. (2) When 
skimmed it must have a specific gravity of 1.033. (3) All milk with a 
specific gravity under 1.027 is to he considered as watered and immedi- 
ately confiscated. (4) All milk with specific gravity over 1.027, if after 
twenty-four hours standing and skimming the specific gravity is under 
1.033, must also he confiscated, also all skimmed milk with a specific 
gravity under 1.033. (5) All milk must he considered skimmed which 
has less than 2.8 per cent, of fat. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 47 

certain amount of which causes what is known as 
" souring." 

Milk from perfectly healthy and perfectly kept 
cows is neutral, leaving both red and blue litmus- 
paper unchanged; but as a general thing milk is 
slightly acid, even when transported directly from 
the producer to the consumer and handled by fairly 
clean workmen in fairly clean vessels. Such milk 
two or three hours old when examined microscopic- 
ally is found to contain millions of organisms. Milk 
is one of the best of foods for bacteria, many of the 
ordinary forms growing in it with exceeding rapidity 
under favorable conditions of temperature. Now it 
has been found that such milk, although it may not 
contain the germs of any certain di- unetimes 

causes in young children, and the sick, very serious 
digestive disturbances, and may thus become indi- 
rectly the cause of fatal maladies. 1 

All milk, unless it is positively known to be given 
by healthy, well-nourished animals, and kept in thor- 
oughly cleaned vessels free from contamination, should 
be sterilized before using. Often the organisms found 
in milk are of disease-giving nature. In Europe and 
America many eases of typhoid fever, scarlatina, and 
diphtheria have been traced to the milk-supply. In 
fact milk and water are two of the most fruitful food 
sources of disease. It therefore immediately becomes 
apparent that, unless these two liquids are above sus- 
picion, they should be sterilized before using. Boiling 
water for half an hour will render it sterile, but milk 
would be injured by evaporation and other changes 
produced in its constituents by such long exposure to 
so high a degree of heat. A better method, and one 
which should be adopted by all who understand some- 
thing of the nature of bacteria, is to expose the milk 

i See article on the Feeding of Children. 



48 EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 

for a longer time to a lower temperature than that of 
boiling. 

To Sterilize Milk for Immediate Use. (1) Pour the 
milk into a granite-ware saucepan or a double boiler, 
raise the temperature to 190° Fahr., and keep it at 
that point for one hour. (2) As soon as done put it 
immediately into a pitcher, or other vessel, which has 
been thoroughly washed, and boiled in a bath of water, 
and cool quickly by placing in a pan of cold or iced 
water. A chemist's thermometer, for testing the tem- 
perature, may be bought at any pharmacy for a small 
sum, but if there is not one at hand, heat the milk 
until a scum forms over the top, and then keep it as 
nearly as possible at that temperature for one hour. 
Do not let it boil. 

To Sterilize Milk which is not for Immediate Use. Put 
the milk into flasks or bottles with narrow mouths ; 
plug them with a long stopper of cotton-wool, place 
the flasks in a wire frame to support them, in a kettle 
of cold water, heat gradually to 190° Fahr., and keep 
it at that temperature for one hour. Repeat this the 
second day, for although all organisms were prob- 
ably destroyed during the first process, spores which 
may have escaped will have developed into bacteria. 
These will be killed by the second heating. Repeat 
again on the third day to destroy any life that may 
have escaped the first two. 

Spores or resting-cells are the germinal cells from 
which new bacteria develop, and are capable of surviv- 
ing a much higher temperature than the bacteria 
themselves, as well as desiccation and severe cold. 1 
Some writers give a lower temperature than 190° Fahr. 
as safe for sterilization with one hour's exposure, but 

i Spores may be further described as resistant forms which some 
organisms assume in times of danger, or lack of nourishment for the 
purpose of preserving their lives. Not all organisms form spores. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 49 

190 may be relied upon. Milk treated by the last or 
"fractional" method of sterilization, as it is called, 
should keep indefinitely, provided of course the cot- 
ton is not disturbed. Cotton-wool or cotton batting 
in thick masses acts as a strainer for bacteria, and 
although air will enter, organisms will not. 

All persons who buy milk, or in any way control 
milk-supplies, should consider themselves in duty 
bound to (1) ascertain by personal investigation the 
condition in which the cows are kept. If there is any 
suspicion that they are diseased, a veterinary surgeon 
should be consulted to decide the case. If they are 
healthy and well fed, they cannot fail to give good 
milk, and nothing more is to be done except to see 
that it is transported in perfectly cleansed and scalded 
vessels. (2) If it is impossible to obtain milk directly 
from the producer, and one is obliged to buy that 
from unknown sources, it should be sterilized the mo- 
ment it enters the house. There is no other means of 
being sure that it will not be a bearer of disease. Not 
all such milk contains disease-producing organisms. 
but it all may contain them, and is therefore not 
above suspicion until they have been deprived of life. 



DIGESTION 

Definition. Digestion is the breaking up, changing, 
and liquefying of the food in the various chambers of 
the alimentary canal designed for that purpose. The 
mechanical breaking up is done principally by the 
teeth in the mouth, the chemical changes and liquefy- 
ing by the various digestive fluids. 1 

i It is supposed, but I think not yet demonstrated, thai bacteria are 
among the transforming agenta of our food, in the alimentary canal. 
Organisms in the saliva have been isolated and found to produce sub- 
stances which will partially digest starch. 



50 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

Digestive Fluids. The digestive fluids are true secre- 
tions. Each is formed from the blood by a special 
gland for the purpose whose function it is to make them; 
they do not exist in the blood as such. Their flow is 
intermittent, taking place only when they are needed. 
The liver, however, is an exception to all the others. It 
is both secretory and excretory, and bile is formed all 
the time, but is most abundant during digestion. 1 

Saliva. The fluid which is mixed with the food in 
the mouth is secreted by a considerable number and 
variety of glands, the principal of which are the pa- 
rotid, submaxillary, and sublingual. Smaller glands 
in the roof and sides of the mouth, in the tongue, and 
in the nrucous membrane of the pharynx contribute 
to the production of saliva, the digestive fluid of the 
mouth. The flow from the parotid gland is great- 
est. The flow from all the glands is greatly increased 
when food is taken, especially if it be of good flavor. 
Sometimes the amount is increased by smell alone, as 
when a nice steak is cooking, or a savory soup, and 
sometimes the saliva is made copious by thought, as 
when we remember the taste of dishes eaten in the 
past, and we say, " It makes the mouth water just to 
think of them." 

Amount of Saliva. According to Dalton the amount 
of saliva secreted every twenty -four hours is 42£ oz. 
Its reaction is almost constantly alkaline. It is com- 
posed of water, organic matter, and various mineral 
salts. Ptyalin is its active principle, and is called by 
some authors animal diastase, or starch converter. 

Gastric Juice. Gastric juice is the digestive fluid of 
the stomach. It is acid. Its flow is intermittent, oc- 
curring only at times of digestion. Its active prin- 
ciples are pepsin and rennin. 

It is worthy of notice here that the character of the 

1 The liver produces bile and elaborates and stores glycogen. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 51 

digestive fluids when food is taken is different from 
what it is when the organs are at rest. For instance, 
the gastric juice which flows in abundance under the 
stimulus of food, is not like the fluid secreted when 
the stomach is collapsed and empty. 

Pancreatic Juice. Pancreatic juice is the digestive 
juice of the pancreas, and is poured into the small in- 
testine a short distance below the pyloric opening. Its 
reaction is alkaline Its flow is entirely suspended 
during the intervals of digestion. 

Bile. Bile, the fourth in order of the digestive 
liquids, is the secretion of the largest gland of the 
body — the liver. It is poured into the small intestine 
by a duct which empties side by side with the duet 
from the pancreas. The How of bile is constant, but 
is greatest during digestion. 

Intestinal Juice. Intestinal juice has been to physi- 
ologists a difficult subject of study. It is mingled 
with the salivary and gastric juicesat the times of di- 
gestion, when it is most desirable to notice its action. 
Nearly all authorities agree that it is alkaline, and 
that its function is to complete the digestion of sub- 
stances which may reach it in an undigested condition. 

Mucus of Large Intestine. The mucus secreted by 
the large intestine is for lubricating only. 

Digestion in Different Parts of the Alimentary Tract. 
Different substances in food are digested in different 
portions of the alimentary canal, and by different 
means. Let us begin in the mouth. Taking the 
classes of foods, starch, one of tin 4 carbohydrates, is 
the one most affected by the ptyalin, or animal dias- 
tase, of the saliva. So energetic is the action of 
ptyalin on starch that 1 part is sufficient to change 
1000 parts. Starch is not acted upon by the gastric 
juice of the stomach at all; however, the continued 
action of the saliva is not entirely interrupted in the 



52 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

stomach. The digestion of starch is completed by 
the action of the pancreatic juice, possibly aided by 
intestinal juice, and consists in its being changed into 
glucose, which is absorbed in solution. 

Sugar, Cane-sugar, or common sugar (also called 
sucrose), passes through the mouth, unchanged, to the 
stomach, where it is converted into glucose by the 
slow action of the acid (hydrochloric) of the gastric 
juice. Dilute hydrochloric acid has the same action 
on sugar outside of the stomach. 

The action of pancreatic juice on sugar is very 
marked; it immediately changes cane-sugar into glu- 
cose. The effect of intestinal fluid is not well under- 
stood, but there is the general agreement that it does 
not change cane-sugar, neither is cane-sugar, as such, 
absorbed in the intestine. Bile does not affect it, 
therefore cane-sugar is digested or converted into 
glucose either by the stomach or pancreas, or both. 
It will now be seen that ultimately the same sub- 
stance, glucose, is obtained from both starch and 
sugar. 

Protein. We now come to the consideration of the 
digestion of the protein compounds, of which albu- 
men may be taken as a type. Possibly no action ex- 
cept breaking up and moistening takes place in the 
mouth. 1 Its digestion begins in the stomach, where 
its structure is broken up and a separation and dis- 
solution of the little sacs which hold it take place. 
The same thing is partially accomplished outside of 
the stomach when white of egg is slightly beaten and 
strained through a cloth. Gastric juice further acts 
on the albumen itself, forming it into what is called 
albumen peptone. The digestion of raw and care- 
fully cooked albumen has been found to be carried 
on very rapidly in the stomach, and the change is 

1 It is possible that albumen and fibrin are acted upon by some of tlie 
juices secreted in tbe moutb. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 53 

essentially the same in both cases, but in favor of the 
slightly coagulated. When the albumen is rendered 
hard, fine, and close in consistency by over-cooking, 
then it is less easy of digestion than when raw. 

Absorption. It is probable that the greater portion 
of the process of digestion of albumen takes place in 
the stomach. 

Fibrin. Fibrin is also digested in the stomach, and 
made into fibrin peptone. 

Casein. Liquid casein is immediately coagulated by 
gastric juice, the active agent being one of its fer- 
ments, rennin. 

Gelatin. Gelatin is quickly dissolved by gastric 
juice, and afterward no longer has the property of 
forming jelly on cooling. Gelatin is more rapidly 
disposed of than the tissue from which it is produced. 

Vegetable Protein. The digestion of the vegetable 
protein compounds, such as the gluten of wheat and 
the protein of the various grains, such as corn, oat- 
meal, etc., is undoubtedly carried on in the stomach, 
but they must be well softened and prepared by the 
action of heat and water, or they will not be digested 
anywhere; and often corn, beans, and grains of oat- 
meal are rejected entirely unchanged. Partially or 
imperfectly digested proteins are affected by pan- 
creatic juice. The function of the pancreatic juice is 
the most important of all of the digestive fluids since 
it emulsifies fats and digests both proteids and carbo- 
hydrates. 

To summarize : The digestion and absorption of 
nitrogenous compounds take place in both the stom- 
ach and the intestines. 

NUTRITION 

One of the important points to bring to the notice 
of pupils in the study of cookery is the phenomenon 



54 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

of nutrition. It is astonishing how vague are the 
ideas that many people have of why they eat food, 
and vaguer still are their notions of the necessity of 
air, pure and plenty. Once instruct the mind that 
it is the air we breathe and the food we eat which 
nourish the body, giving material for its various pro- 
cesses, for nervous and muscular energy, and for 
maintaining the constant temperature which the body 
must always possess in order to be in a state of health, 
and there is much more likelihood that the dignity 
and importance of proper cooking and proper food 
will not be overlooked. 

A knowledge that the health and strength of a per- 
son depend largely upon what passes through his 
mouth, that even the turn of his thinking is modified 
by what he eats, should lead all intelligent women to 
make food a conscientious subject of study. 

In general, by the term " nutrition " is meant the 
building up and maintaining of the physical frame- 
work of the body with all its various functions, and 
ultimately the mental and moral faculties which are 
dependent upon it, by means of nutriment or food. 

The word is derived from the Latin nutrire, to 
nourish. The word " nurse" is from the same root, 
and in its original sense means one who nourishes, a 
person who supplies food, tends, or brings up. 

Anything which aids in sustaining the body is food j 
therefore, air and water, the two most immediate ne- 
cessities of life, may be, and often are, so classed. 

Nutriment exclusive of air is received into the body 
by means of the alimentary canal. The great receiver 
of air is the lungs, but it also penetrates the body 
through the pores of the skin, and at these points 
carbonic acid is given off as in the lungs. The body 
is often compared to a steam-engine, which takes in 
raw material in the form of fuel and converts it into 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 55 

force or power. Food, drink, and air are the materials 
furnished to it, — the things consumed; heat, muscular 
and intellectual energy, and other forms of power are 
the products. 

Food, during the various digestive processes, be- 
comes reduced to a liquid, and is then absorbed and 
conveyed, by different channels constructed for the 
purpose, into the blood, which contains, after being 
acted upon by the oxygen of the air in the lungs, all 
those substances which are required to maintain the 
various tissues, secretions, and, in fact, the life of the 
system. 

Sonic of the ways in which the different kinds of 
food nourish the body have been found out by chem- 
ists and physiologists from actual experiments on 
living animals, such as rabbits, dogs, pigs, sheep, 
goats, and horses, and also on man. Often a scien- 
tist becomes so enthusiastic in his search for know- 
ledge about a certain food that he gives his own 
body for trial. Much valuable work lias been done 
in this direction during the last decade by Voit, 
Pettenkofer, Moleschott, Ranke, Payen, and in this 
country by At water. 

No one can explain all the different intricate 
changes which a particle of food undergoes from the 
moment it enters the mouth until its final transfor- 
mation into tissue or some form of energy; but by 
comparing the income with the outgo, ideas may be 
gained of what goes on in the economy of the body, 
and of the proportion of nutrients used, and some of 
the intricate and complex chemical changes which the 
different food principles undergo in the various pro- 
cesses of digestion, assimilation, and use. 1 Probably 

iThe body loses each day, in the performance of its ordinary and 
usual functions, about nine pounds of matter (Martin) ; therefore, that 
amount of income of food, water, and air will be needed in every 

twenty-four hours. 



56 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

hundreds of changes take place in the body, in its va- 
rious nutritive functions, of which nothing is known, 
or they are entirely unsuspected, so that if we do our 
utmost with the present lights which we possess for 
guidance to health, we shall still fall far short of 
completeness. The subject of food and nutrition, 
viewed in the light of bacteriology and chemistry, is 
one of the most invitiDg subjects of study of the day, 
and is worthy of the wisest thought of the nation. 

The body creates nothing of itself, either of ma- 
terial or of energy ; all must come to it from without. 
Every atom of carbon, hydrogen, phosphorus, or 
other elements, every molecule of protein, carbo- 
hydrate, or other compounds of these elements, is 
brought to the body with the food and drink it con- 
sumes, and the air it breathes. Like the steam- 
engine, it uses the material supplied to it. Its 
chemical compounds and energy are the compounds 
and energy of the food transformed (Atwater). A 
proof of this is seen in the fact that when the supply 
from without is cut off, the body dies. The raw 
material which the body uses is the air and food 
which it consumes, the greater portion of which is 
digested and distributed, through the medium of the 
blood, to all parts of the body, to renew and nourish 
the various tissues and to supply the material for the 
different activities of life. 

Ways in which Food Supplies the Wants of the Body. 
Food supplies the wants of the body in several ways — 
(1) it is used to form the tissues of the body — bones, 
flesh, tendons, skin, and nerves ; (2) it is used to re- 
pair the waste of the tissues j (3) it is stored in the 
body for future use ; (4) it is consumed as fuel to 
maintain the constant temperature which the body 
must always possess to be in a state of health ; (5) 
it produces muscular and nervous energy. 1 The 

1 Prof. Atwater, in "The Century Magazine," 1887-88. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 57 

amount of energy of the body depends upon two 
things — the amount in the food eaten, and the ability 
of the body to use it, or free it for use. 

With every motion, and every thought and feeling, 
material is consumed, hence the more rapid wearing 
out of persons who do severe work, and of the nervous 
— those who are keenly susceptible to every change 
in their surroundings, to change of weather, even to 
the thoughts and feelings of those about them. 

We easily realize that muscular force or energy 
cannot be maintained without nutriment in proper 
quality and amount. An underfed or starving man 
has not the strength of a well-fed person. He cannot 
lift the same weight, cannot walk as far, cannot work 
as hard. We do not as easily comprehend the nervous 
organism, and generally have less sympathy with 
worn-out or ill-nourished nerves than muscles, but 
the sensibilities and the intellectual faculties, of 
which the nerves and brain arc but the instruments, 
depend upon the right nutrition of the whole system 
for their proper and healthful exercise. 

So many factors enter into the make-up of a 
thought that it cannot be said that any particular 
kind of food will ultimately produce a poem; but of 
this we may be sure, that the best work, the noblest 
thoughts, the most original ideas, will not come from 
a dyspeptic, underfed, or in any way ill-nourished 
individual. 

The classification of foods has been usually based 
upon the deductions of Prout that milk contains all 
the necessary nutrients in the best form and propor- 
tions, viz., the nitrogenous matters, fat, sugar, water, 
and salts; the latter being combinations of mag- 
nesium, calcium, potassium, sodium, and iron, with 
chlorin, phosphoric acid, and, in smaller quantities, 
sulphuric acid. 

These different classes seem to serve different pur- 



58 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

poses in the body, and are all necessary for perfect 
nutrition. Some of them closely resemble each other 
in composition, but are quite different in their physio- 
logical properties, and in the ends which they serve. 
For instance, starch (C 6 H 10 O 5 ) has almost the same 
chemical formula as sugar (C 12 H 22 1 i), and yet the 
one cannot replace the other to its entire exclusion. 
The Protein Compounds. In general it may be said 
that the carbohydrates are changed into fats, and are 
used for the production of force, and that the fats 
are stored in the body as fat and used as fuel. The 
protein compounds do all that can be done by the 
fats and carbohydrates, and in addition something 
more ; • that is, they form the basis of blood, muscle, 
sinew, skin, and bone. They are, therefore, the most 
important of all the food compounds. The terms 
" power-givers " and " energy-formers " are sometimes 
applied to them, because wherever power and energy 
are developed they are present, though not by any 
means the only substances involved in the evolution 
of energy. Probably the fats and carbohydrates 
give most of the material for heat and the various other 
forces of the body. In case of emergency, where 
these are deficient, the proteins are used 5 but protein 
alone forms the basis of muscle, tendons, skin, and 
other tissues. This the fats and carbohydrates can- 
not do (At water). The different tissues are known 
from chemical analysis to contain complex nitrogenous 
compounds. Now, since the body cannot construct 
these substances out of the simpler chemical com- 
pounds which come to it, it becomes perfectly evident 
that the diet must have a due proportion of them in 
order to maintain the strength of the body. We get 
most of our protein from the flesh of animals, and 
they in turn get it from plants, which construct it 
from the crude materials of earth and air. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 59 

The Extractives, usually classed with the protein 
compounds, such as meat extract, beef tea, etc., are 
not generally regarded as direct nutrients, but, like 
tea and coffee, are valuable as accessory foods, lend- 
ing savor to other foods and aiding their digestion 
by pleasantly exciting the flow of the digestive fluids. 
They also act as brain and nerve stimulants, and per- 
haps also in some slight degree as nutrients. 

The principal proteins or nitrogenous substances 
are albumen in various forms, casein both animal 
and vegetable, Hood fibrin, muscle fibrin, and globulin. 
All are very much alike, and probably can replace 
one another in nutrition. 

Modern chemists agree that nitrogen is a necessary 
element in the various chemical and physiological 
actions which take place in the body to produce heat, 
muscular energy, and the other powers. Every 
structure in the body in which any form of energy is 
manifested is nitrogenous. The nerves, muscles, 
glands, ami the floating cells' in the various liquids 
are nitrogenous. That nitrogen is necessary to the 
different processes of the system, is shown by the fact 
that if it be cut off, these processes languish. This 
may not occur immediately, for the body always has 
a store of nitrogen laid by for emergencies which will 
be consumed first, but it will occur as soon as these 
have been consumed. The energy of the body is 
measured by its consumption of oxygen. Motion and 
heat may be owing to the oxidation of fat, or of 
starch, or of nitrogenous substances; but whatever 
the source, the direction is given by the nitrogenous 
structure — in other words, nitrogen is necessary to 
all energy generated in the body. 

Protein matter nourishes the organic framework, 
takes part in the generation of energy, and may be 

1 Hemoglobin, the red coloring matter of the blood, contains albumen. 



60 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



converted into non-nitrogenous substances. 1 The 
necessity of the protein compounds is emphasized 
when we realize that about one half of the body is 
composed of muscle, one fifth of which is protein, 
and the nitrogen in this protein can be furnished only 
by protein, since neither fats nor carbohydrates con- 
tain it. It is therefore evident that the protein- 
containing foods, such as beef, mutton, fish, eggs, 
milk, and others, are our most valued nutrients. Our 
daily diet must contain a due proportion. 

The proteins are all complex chemical compounds, 
which in nutrition become reduced to simple forms, 
and are then built up again into flesh. The animal 
foods are in the main the best of the protein com- 
pounds, for they are rich in nitrogenous matter, are 
easily digested, and from their composition and adapt- 
ability are most valuable in maintaining the life of 
the body. 

A diet of lean meat alone serves to build up tissue. 
If nothing else be taken, the stored-up fat of the 
body will be consumed, and the person will become 
thin. 2 Athletes while in training take advantage of 
this fact, and are allowed to eat only such food as 
shall furnish the greatest amount of strength and 
muscular energy with a minimum of fat. The lean 
of beef and mutton, with a certain amount of bread, 
constitute the foundation of the diet. 

Fats. Most of the fatty substances of food are 



i Protein may be converted into tat ; but although this will happen, 
it will not do to depend upon it for the supply in the nutrition of the 
body; for either it cannot be formed in sufficient quantity, or the excess 
of nitrogen acts as a poison. The body suffers unless a due amount of 
fat as such be taken. (Martin.) 

2 By regulating the amount of fat taken each day with food, so that 
a little less than is needed is consumed, one may reduce the amount of 
fat of the body and become thin, or reduce an excess of fat without in- 
jury to health. The process must be gradual, and continued for a 
number of months. Bismarck, by the advice of his physician, reduced 
his weight in this way without loss of energy or any ill feeling. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 61. 

liquefied at the temperature of the body. When eaten 
in the form of adipose tissue, as the fat of beef and 
mutton, the vesicles or cells in which the fat is held 
are dissociated or dissolved, the fat is set free, and 
mingles with the digesting mass. This is done in the 
stomach, and is a preparation for its further change 
in the intestines. 

Fats are not dissolved — that is, in the sense in which 
meats and other foods are dissolved— in the process 
of digestion ; the chief change which they undergo is 
a minute subdivision caused principally by the action 
of the pancreatic juice. In this condition of fine 
emulsion they are taken up by the lacteals ; they 
may also be absorbed by the blood-vessels. 

It has been found that fat emulsions pass more 
easily through membranes which have been moistened 
with bile, and it is probable that the function of bile 
is partly to facilitate the absorption of fat. That the 
pancreatic juice is the chief agent in forming fats into 
emulsion was discovered in 1848. Bile is, however, 
essential to their perfect digestion, and we may there- 
fore say that they are digested by the united action 
of the pancreatic juice and the bile. 1 

Fat forms in the body fatty tissues, and serves for 
muscular force and heat ; it is also necessary to nour- 
ish nerves and other tissues, — in fact, without it 
healthy tissues cannot be formed. A proper amount 
of fat is also a sort of albumen sparer. 

It is probable that the fat which is used in the 
body either to be stored away or for energy, is de- 
rived from other sources than directly from the fat 
eaten. From experiments made by Lawes and Gil- 
bert on pigs, it is evident that the excess of fat stored 
in their bodies must be derived from some other 
source than the fat contained in their food, and must 

l Flint's "Physiology." 



62 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 



be produced partly from nitrogenous matter and 
partly from carbohydrates, or, at least, that the lat- 
ter play a part in its formation. It would appear 
from this that life might be maintained on starch, 
water, salts, and meat free from fat; but although 
the theory seems a good one, practically it is found 
in actual experiment 1 that nutrition is impaired by a 
lack of fat in the diet. The ill effects were soon seen, 
and immediate relief was given when fat was added 
to the food. Besides, in the food of all nations starch 
is constantly associated with some form of fat; bread 
with butter; potatoes with butter, cream, or gravy; 
macaroni and polenta with oil, and so forth. A man 
may live for a time and be healthy with a diet of al- 
buminoids, fats, salts, and water, but it has not yet 
been proved that a similar result will be produced by 
a diet of albuminoids, carbohydrates, salts, and water 
without fat. Fat is necessary to perfect nutrition. 
Health cannot be maintained on albuminoids, salts, 
and water alone; but, on the other hand, cannot be 
maintained without them. 

Probably the value of fats, as such, is dependent 
upon the ease with which they are digested. The 
fats eaten are not stored in the body directly, but the 
body constructs its fats from those eaten, and from 
other substances in food, — according to some author- 
ities from the carbohydrates andproteids, and accord- 
ing to others from proteids alone. 

Fats are stored away as fat, furnish heat, and are 
used for energy ; at least, it is probable that at times 
they are put to the latter use. The fats laid \>y in 
the body for future use last in cases of starvation 
quite a long time, depending, of course, upon the 
amount. At such times a fat animal will live longer 
than a lean one. 

1 Partes. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 63 

Doubtless in the fat of food the body finds material 
for its fats in the most easily convertible form. Of 
the various fatty substances taken, some are more 
easily assimilated than others. Dr. Fothergill, in " The 
Town Dweller," says that the reason that cod-liver oil 
is given to delicate children and invalids is, that it is 
more easily digested than ordinary fats, but it is an 
inferior form of fat ; the next most easily digested is 
the fat of bacon. When a child can take bread 
crumbled in a little of this fat, it will not be necessary 
to give him cod-liver oil. Bacon fat is the much bet- 
ter fat for building tissues. Then comes cream, a 
natural emulsion, and butter. He further says there 
is one form of fat not commonly looked at in its 
proper dietetic value, and that is " toffee." It is made 
of butter, sugar, and sometimes a portion of molasses. 
A quantity of this, added to the ordinary meals, will 
enable a child in winter to keep up the bodily heat. 
The way in which butter in the form of toffee goes 
into the stomach is particularly agreeable. 

Carbohydrates. The principal carbohydrates are 
starch, dextrine, cane-sugar or common table sugar, 
grape-sugar, the principal sugar in fruits, and milk* 
sugar, the natural sugar in milk. They are substances 
made up, as before stated, of carbon, hydrogen, and 
oxygen, but no nitrogen. They are important food 
substances, but are of themselves incapable of sus- 
taining life. 

The carbohydrates, both starch and sugar, in the 
process of digestion are converted into glucose. This 
is stored in the liver in the form of glycogen, which the 
liver has the power of manufacturing ; it then passes 
into the circulation, and is distributed to the different 
parts of the body as it is needed. (The liver also has 
the power of forming glycogen out of other sub- 
stances than sugar, and it is pretty conclusively 



64 EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 

proved that it is from proteids, and not from fats. 
Carnivorous animals, living upon flesh alone, are 
found to have glycogen in their bodies.) 

It is impossible to assign any especial office to the 
different food principles ; that is, it cannot be said 
that the carbohydrates perform a certain kind of 
work in the body and nothing else, or that the pro- 
teids or fats do. The human body is a highly com- 
plex and intricate organism, and its maintenance is 
carried on by complex and mysterious processes that 
cannot be followed, except imperfectly; consequently, 
we must regard the uses of foods in the body as 
more or less involved in obscurity. It is, however, 
generally understood that the proteids, fats, and car- 
bohydrates each do an individual work of their own 
better than either of the others can do it. They are 
all necessary in due amount to the nutrition of the 
body, and doubtless work together as well as in their 
separate functions. They are, however, sometimes in- 
terchangeable, as, for instance, in the absence of the 
carbohydrates, proteids will do their work. The car- 
bohydrates are eminently heat and energy formers, 
and they also act as albumen sparers. 

The body always has a store of material laid by for 
future use. If it were not for this a person deprived 
of food would die immediately, as is the case when he 
is deprived of oxygen. (Air being ever about us, and 
obtainable without effort or price, there is no need for 
the body to lay by an amount of oxygen • consequently 
only a very little is stored, and that in the blood.) 

The great reserve forces of the body are in the form 
of fatty tissues, and glycogen, or the stored-away car- 
bohydrates of the liver; the latter is given out to the 
body as it is needed during the intervals of eating to 
supply material for the heat and energy of daily con- 
sumption, and in case of starvation. That they are 



EXPLANATOEY LESSONS 65 

true reserves is shown by the fact that they disappear 
during deprivation of food. The glycogen, or liver- 
supply, disappears first; then the fat (Martin). The 
heat of the body can be maintained on these sub- 
stances, and a certain amount of work done, although 
no food except water be taken. 

The principal function of the liver is to form gly- 
cogen to be stored away. It constantly manufactures 
it, and as constantly loses it to the circulation. Gly- 
cogen is allied to starch, having the same elementary 
composition (C 6 H 10 O 5 ), but differing in other ways. 
Its quantity is greatest about two hours after a full 
meal; then it gradually falls, but increases again 
when food is again taken. Its amount also varies 
with the hind of food eaten: fats and proteids by 
themselves give little, but starch and sugars give 
much, for it is found in greatest quantity when these 
form a part of the diet. 

Inorganic Matter and Vegetable Acids. Water and 
other inorganic matter, as the salts of different kinds, 
and vegetable acids, as vinegar and lemon-juice, can 
scarcely be said to be digested. Water is absorbed, 
and salts are generally in solution in liquids and are 
absorbed with them. 

Water is found in all parts of the body, even in the 
very solid portions, as the bones and the enamel of 
the teeth; it also constitutes a large proportion of its 
semisolids and fluids, some of which are nearly all 
water, as the perspiration and the tears. 

Water usually is found combined with some of the 
salts, which seem to act as regulators of the amount 
which shall be incorporated into a tissue. Water is 
a necessary constituent of all tissues, giving them a 
proper consistency and elasticity. The power of re- 
sistance of the bones could not be maintained without 
it. It is also valuable as a food solvent, assisting in 



66 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

the liquefying of different substances, which are taken 
up by the various absorbent tubes, conveyed into the 
blood, and so circulated through the body. Most of 
the water of the body is taken into it from without, 
but it is also formed in the body by the union of 
hydrogen and oxygen. 1 

Sodium chlorid, or common salt, is found in the 
blood and other fluids, and in the solids of the 
body, except the enamel of the teeth $ it occurs in 
greatest proportion in the fluids. The part that this 
salt plays in nutrition is not altogether understood. 
" Common salt is intermediate in certain general pro- 
cesses, and does not participate by its elements in the 
formation of organs" (Liebig). Salt is intimately 
associated with water, which plays an intermediate 
part also in nutrition, being a bearer or carrier of 
nutritious matters through the body. 

Salt seems to regulate the absorption and use of 
nutrients. It is found in the greatest quantity in 
the blood and chyle. It doubtless facilitates digestion 
by rendering foods more savory, and thus causing the 
digestive juices to flow more freely. Sodium chlorid 
is contained in most if not all kinds of food, but not 
in sufficient quantity to supply the wants of the body ; 
it therefore becomes a necessary part of a diet. 

Potassium chlorid has similar uses to sodium chlo- 
rid, although not so generally distributed through 
the body. It is found in muscle, liver, milk, chyle, 
blood, mucus, saliva, bile, gastric juice, and one or 
two other fluids. 

Calcium phosphate is found in all the fluids and 
solids of the body, held in solution in them by the 
presence of C0 2 ; both it and calcium carbonate enter 
largely into the structure of the bones. 

Sodium carbonate, magnesium phosphate, and other 
salts play important parts in nutrition. 

i Martin. 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 67 

The various salts influence chemical change as well 
as act in rendering food soluble. For example, serum 
albumen, the chief proteid of the blood, is insoluble 
in pure water, but dissolves easily in water which has 
a little neutral salts in it. 1 Salts also help to give 
firmness to the teeth and bones. 

To recapitulate, food is eaten, digested, assimilated, 
and consumed or transformed in the body by a series 
of highly intricate and complex processes. It is for 
the most part used for the different powers and ac- 
tivities of the system; there is, however, always a 
small portion which is rejected as waste. The first 
change is in the mouth, where the food is broken up 
and moistened and the digestion of starch begins; 
these changes continue in the stomach until the whole 
is reduced to a more or less liquid mass. As the con- 
tents of the stomach pass little by little into the duo- 
denum, the mass becomes more fluid by the admixture 
of bile, and pancreatic juice, and, as it passes along, 
digestion and absorption takes place; the mass 
grows darker in color and less fluid, until all good 
material is taken up and only waste left, which is 
rejected from the body. 

That portion of the food which is not affected by 
the single or united action of the digestive fluids is 
chiefly of vegetable origin. Hard seeds, such as corn, 
and the outer coverings of grains, such as the husk of 
oatmeal and those parts which are composed largely 
of cellulose, pass through the intestinal canal without 
change. 

It may be remarked here that since the digestive 
mechanism is so perfect a structure, and will try to 
dissolve anything given it, and select only that which 
is good, why should there be the necessity of giving 
any special attention to preparing food before it is 
eaten? The answer is that the absorptive vessels 

i Martin. 



68 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

cannot take up what is not there, neither can the 
digestive organs supply what the food lacks ; therefore, 
the food must contain in suitable proportions all sub- 
stances needed by the body. Also, food which contains 
a large proportion of waste, or is difficult of digestion 
from over or under cooking, or is unattractive by in- 
sipidity or unsavoriness, or is unwholesome in itself, 
interferes with normal and proper assimilation, over- 
works the digestive powers, and causes the whole sys- 
tem to suffer. Mal-nutrition, with the long line of evils 
which it entails, is the cause, direct or indirect, of 
most of the sickness in the world, for it reduces the 
powers of the system, and thus enfeebles its resist- 
ance to disease. 

Ideal Diet. " The ideal diet is that combination of 
food which, while imposing the least burden upon the 
body, supplies it with exactly sufficient material to 
meet its wants" (Schuster). 

In general the digestibility of foods may be sum- 
marized as follows : 

1. The protein of ordinary animal foods is very readily and 
completely digestible. 

2. The protein of vegetable foods is much less easily digested 
than that of animal foods. 

3. The fat of animal foods may at times fail of digestion. 

4. Sugar and starch are easy of digestion. 

5. Animal foods have the advantage of vegetable foods in that 
they contain more protein, and that their protein is more easily 
digested. (Atwater.) 



A diet largely of animal food leaves very little un- 
digested matter. The albuminoids in all cases are 
completely transformed into nutriment. Fat enters 
the blood as a fine emulsion. 

Absorption. The general rule of absorption is that 
food is taken into the circulation through the porous 



EXPLANATORY LESSONS 69 

walls of the alimentary tract as rapidly as it is com- 
pletely digested. A large portion of liquid is imme- 
diately absorbed by the blood-vessels of the stomach. 

Adaptation of Foods to Particular Needs and Conditions. 
The demands of different individuals for nutrients in 
the daily food vary with age, occupation, and other 
conditions of life, including especially the peculiar 
characteristics of people. No two persons are ex- 
actly alike in their expenditure of muscular and ner- 
vous energy, so no two will need the same amount 
or kind of nutriment to repair the waste. 

A man who digs in a field day after day expends a 
certain amount of muscular energy. A lawyer, states- 
man, or author who works with his brain instead of 
his hands uses nervous force, but very little muscular. 
Brain and muscle are not nourished exactly by the 
same materials ; therefore, the demand in the way of 
nutriment of these two classes will not be the same. 

The lawyer might find a feast in a box of sardines 
and. some biscuit, while the field laborer would look 
with contempt upon such food, and turn from it to 
fat pork and cabbage. This is no mere difference in 
refinement of taste, but a real and instinctive differ- 
ence in the demands of the two constitutions. Sar- 
dines supply to the brain-worker the material he 
needs, and the pork and cabbage to the laborer the 
heat and energy he expends. 

In health the sense of taste is the best guide to 
what is demanded by the system, and may as a gen- 
eral rule be followed ; but in sickness that will not do, 
as the sense of taste in particular is disturbed by 
most forms of disease. 

When a patient is very ill only the simplest foods will 
be used, and those will be prescribed by the physician ; 
but when a patient is out of danger, and the necessity 
for variety comes, then the nurse, by preparing or 



70 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

suggesting dishes, may do much toward restoring the 
person to health and strength. 

As a very large percentage of diseases arise from 
imperfect nutrition (as large as eighty per cent, being 
given by some writers), the sense of taste is usually 
very much disturbed and dulled in illness ; therefore 
those kinds of food which are savory, and at the same 
time easy of digestion and nutritious, should be se- 
lected. The savory quality is very important. A 
person in health may endure badly cooked food and 
monotony in diet; a person recovering from an ill- 
ness cannot but suffer by it. 

A nurse will find a pleasant field for the exercise of 
ingenuity in selecting and preparing such dishes as 
shall (1) be suited to the digestive powers of the 
patient ; (2) shall be savory ; (3) shall be sufficiently 
varied to supply all those materials which the de- 
pleted and exhausted body needs j and (4) shall be in 
such judicious quantity as shall increase nutrition, 
but never overtax the digestive powers. 

The decision of No. 1 (food suited to the digestive 
powers) is the most difficult, and here again the doc- 
tor will advise for particular or peculiar diseases. 

There are certain things which from their natural 
composition are more easy of digestion than others, 
such, for instance, as milk, eggs slightly coagulated 
and raw, beef tea with the juices in solution, cocoa 
milk, and cocoa, coffee, jellies, gruels, porridge from 
prepared grains (except oatmeal) when thoroughly 
cooked, oysters alive, rice, venison, and tripe. 

No. 2, the savory quality, depends largely upon 
preparation, and is under the control of the nurse. A 
baked potato done in a hot oven, just to the point, 
and served immediately, is a delicious dish ; overdone, 
or done in an oven of low temperature, and served 
lukewarm, it is very far from appetizing. A steak, if 






EXPLANATORY LESSONS 71 

cut thin, salted, and broiled slowly, will be hard, dry, 
and lacking in flavor, but if it is cut thick, at least an 
inch and a half, better two inches, broiled for the first 
minute over very hot coals, and then slowly, that the 
heat may have time to penetrate to the center, and 
raise the whole to a temperature sufficiently high to 
cook it (about 160° Fahr.) without charring the out- 
side, it will make a dish both wholesome and savory. 

No. 3, the next consideration, is that of variety, and 
here the resources and judgment of the person in 
charge must come to the front. Only general hints 
can be given. Endeavor to supply some protein, 
some fat, some of the carbohydrates, and some min- 
eral matter in each meal. Bread, grains, or potatoes 
will give the necessary starch. Sugar is usually sup- 
plied with drinks. Milk, eggs, meat, fish, and oysters 
will give protein; cream, butter, bacon, and the fat 
of other meats will furnish fat, and fruits and green 
salads give acids and mineral salts. For the latter, 
grapes, apples, carrots, onions, dandelions, and lettuce 
are very valuable. Grapes are composed of water 
with salts in solution, and glucose ; both are absorbed 
with very little outlay from the system. The others 
are every-day foods, but science has taught that their 
instinctive use in the past has been a wise one. 

No. 4, the quantity of food to offer to a sick per- 
son, will depend upon the individual. Give enough, 
but rather give to an invalid too little than too much, 
especially in the first days of using solid food; for 
after some forms of sickness there is great hunger, 
and one may injure himself by overeating at such a 
time. Furnish a little of each kind of food, but let 
that little be of good quality and perfectly prepared, 
so that every morsel is eatable. It is discouraging to 
any one to have set before him food such that much of 
it must be rejected uneaten. It is very encouraging, 



72 EXPLANATORY LESSONS 

especially to an invalid, to be able to eat all that is 
brought him, and for this end cooking and serving 
are of great importance. It is necessary to adjust 
the proportions of the different kinds of foods to 
the needs of the consumer, otherwise all unnecessary 
material will be rejected from the body as waste, or 
will be accumulated in it to interfere with the work- 
ings of the different organs. 

In general it may be said that the needs of no two 
individuals can be satisfied with exactly the same diet. 
In sickness it is the province of the physician to adjust 
the food to the condition of the patient. In conva- 
lescence the taste of the individual and the judgment 
of the nurse or attendant combined will usually not 
fail of good results. If an individual craves a certain 
dish, and there is no good reason why he should not 
have it, by all means procure it. Let only your judg- 
ment act. It may be something that you personally 
do not like. That should not influence a decision, 
provided, of course, that the food is not unwholesome. 

We should bear in mind that a sick person is not 
in the same condition as ourselves, and that no matter 
how absurd his cravings may seem, they may be but 
perfectly natural longings for those substances which 
his depleted and exhausted system needs in order to 
be restored to health. 



PART II 
RECIPES 



PART II 
RECIPES 

BEEF-JUICE, BEEF-TEA, AND BROTHS 

Beef- Juice. The clear juice of beef, slightly diluted 
with water, is always excellent, being especially use- 
ful for its strong flavors. It is like concentrated 
beef-tea, and is often valuable in pleasantly exciting 
the action of the mouth and stomach after a long ill- 
ness in which milk has been the chief article of diet. 

Beef -juice is best made by broiling the beef. Pre- 
pared in this way, the flavor is superior, and it is a 
quick and easy method ; but when a proper broiling 
fire cannot be had, then it may be made in a glass 
jar like beef-tea, except without the water. 

Beef-Tea is valuable for its stimulating properties 
and for the warmth that it gives ; it is also somewhat 
nutritious, containing as it does the nitrogenous 
juices of the meat, some salts, and the very important 
flavors. Beef-tea should be prepared in such a mau- 
ner that the juices are held in solution in the water, 
not coagulated, to secure which the cooking tempera- 
ture should never be allowed to exceed that of 160° 
Fahr. 

75 



76 RECIPES 

Broths. Beef, mutton, and chicken broths are the 
most desirable forms of meat drinks for convalescents 
and those no longer daDgerously ill. By slow cook- 
ing at a low temperature at first (the temperature 
should not exceed 150° Fahr. for the first hour), the 
extractives and albuminous juices are drawn out; 
then, by boiling, the gelatin of the bones, flesh, and 
other tissues is dissolved. The nutritive qualities of 
these broths may be much increased by the addition 
of bread, rice, tapioca, barley, and sago, cooked dur- 
ing the whole time so that they may be completely 
dissolved in the liquid. 

BEEF-JUICE 

Bottled. Select a half pound of well-flavored beef, 
cut away everything except the lean fiber, divide it 
into small pieces, put them into a glass jar, cover, 
and place in a deep saucepan of cold water; heat 
gradually for one hour, but do not allow the tem- 
perature at any time to exceed 160° Fahr.; then 
strain out the juice and press the meat. The liquid 
should be clear red, not brown and flaky. Add a 
little salt, and it is ready to serve. A half pound 
will make three or four tablespoons of juice. If it 
is to be used constantly, a larger quantity may be 
made at once, as it will keep eighteen hours in a re- 
frigerator. Beef -juice may be made into tea by dilut- 
ing it with warm water. 

Broiled. Prepare a fire of clear glowing coals from 
which all blue flames have disappeared. Cut a piece 
of lean beef (one half pound from the round or any 
good lean portion) one and one half inches thick, and 
remove from it all membranous tissues and fat. Put 
it into a wire broiler, and broil from six to eight 
minutes according to the intensity of the fire (see 



RECIPES 77 

rules for broiling). The piece when done should be 
pink and full of juice, not dry and hard, nor, on the 
other hand, bluish-red in the middle. More juice will 
be obtained if the heat has penetrated to the center 
than if the meat is raw. When done, cut it into small 
pieces and squeeze out the juice with a meat-press or a 
lemon-squeezer. Add a little salt, and it is ready to 
serve. It should be given in spoonfuls, either warm 
or cold. If it is necessary to warm it, put a little into 
a cup and place it in a dish of warm water on the fire. 
Care should be taken that the water does not become 
hotter than 160° Fahr., for beyond that temperature 
the albuminous juices become coagulated and appear 
as brown flakes. 

BEEF-TEA 

Bottled. Select and prepare the meat in the same 
manner as for bottled beef -juice, except that for 
every half pound a cup of water should be used, 
poured over after it has been put into the jar. The 
liquid thus obtained will resemble beef -juice in every 
respect except in strength. Serve as a drink in a red 
wine-glass or a china cup. 

With Hydrochloric Acid. Hydrochloric acid acts upon 
the fibers of meat in such a way that they become more 
easy of digestion. From a given portion of meat much 
more nutriment is extracted by the use of hydrochloric 
acid than without it j beef -tea made with it is recom- 
mended by physicians as the most easily absorbed form 
of beef drink, and for feeble children and patients 
much weakened by sickness it is especially useful. 

To Prepare. Select a half pound of good beef ; re- 
move from it everything that is not clear meat, — that 
is, bone, gristle, connective tissue, and fat ; chop it 
fine on a meat-board or in a chopping-tray. Put 



78 RECIPES 

into a bowl one cup of water and five drops of dilute 
hydrochloric acid; stir into this the chopped meat, 
and set it in a refrigerator or any cool place for two 
hours to digest. Then strain, flavor with salt, and 
serve cold in a red wine-glass. 

Should there be any objection to the taste or color, 
heat the tea until it steams and changes to a brown- 
ish hue ; do not strain out the flakes of coagulated 
albumen and fibrin which appear, for they are the 
most nutritious portion of the tea. 

Chemically pure hydrochloric. acid may be obtained 
of a druggist (it is usually marked C. P.) ; from it a 
dilute solution may be made by mixing it in the pro- 
portien of five and one half fluidounces to fourteen 
ounces of water. 

BEEF BROTH 

Beef broth is the juice of beef extracted by the 
long application of heat in connection with some sol- 
vent, usually water. 

To make beef broth, allow one pound of meat, or 
meat and bone, to every quart of water. Wash the 
meat with a cloth in cold water until it is clean, or 
wipe it with a wet cloth if it is apparently fresh cut ; 
divide it into small pieces (half -inch cubes) in order to 
expose as great an extent of surface as possible to the 
dissolving action of the water. Put it into a granite- 
ware kettle with cold water, and cook it at a low tem- 
perature for two hours, then boil it for two hours to 
dissolve the gelatin. Remove it from the fire, and 
strain it, using a strainer so coarse that the flakes of 
albumen may go through (an ordinary wire strainer 
will do). Skim as much fat as possible from the sur- 
face with a spoon, and then remove the remaining 
small particles with a sheet of clean paper (unsized is 



RECIPES 79 

best) drawn over the surface. Season the broth with 
salt and pepper, and serve it very hot. If not needed 
at once, it may be set away to cool, when the fat will rise 
to the top, and form into a cake which may be lifted off. 

With Herbs. Make a broth according to the above 
rule, and flavor it with bay-leaves, mint, or with a 
bouquet of sweet herbs in the proportion of one tea- 
spoon to a quart of liquid. 

With Grains. One tablespoon of any of the follow- 
ing grains — rice, barley, oatmeal, or wheat — to one 
quart of liquid, gives a pleasant consistency and fla- 
vor to beef broth. Tapioca, sago, cold dry toast, or 
cuttings of bread may also be used. They should be 
put in when the broth is first set on the fire to cook, 
that they may be completely dissolved in the liquid. 

With Vegetables. Celery, onion, carrot, turnip, or 
shredded cabbage may be used in broth in the pro- 
portion of one tablespoon to a quart. Cabbage is 
better in combination with onion than alone. 



BROTH MADE FROM BEEFSTEAK 

(a quick method) 

Scrape the pulp from a pound of round or of sirloin 
steak, or mince the meat in a chopping-tray until it is 
fine j put it into a saucepan with just enough cold 
water to cover it, and let it come to the boiling-point 
slowly; then simmer it for fifteen minutes (better 
half an hour if there is time). Strain it, take off the 
fat with a sheet of paper, and season it with salt. This 
is a somewhat expensive but savory broth, and may 
easily be made on a gas or alcohol stove. 

A beef panada may be made by leaving the pulp in 
the broth and adding a little rolled cracker-crumbs or 
some bread softened and squeezed through a strainer. 



80 EECIPES 



SCOTCH BEEF BROTH 

Put into a granite stew-pan a pint of prepared 
beef broth, — that is, broth which has been strained, 
cleared of fat, and seasoned. Add to it one table- 
spoon of rolled oats, or of ordinary oatmeal, and sim- 
mer it gently until the oatmeal is soft and jelly-like. 
The time required will be about two hours. Then 
strain it, and serve very hot. This makes a good dish 
for an invalid for whom oatmeal has not been forbid- 
den. If the broth is reduced by the boiling, add 
enough water to restore the pint. 



CHICKEN BROTH 

Chicken broth should be made with fowl, not with 
young chicken ; a good one weighing three pounds 
will make three pints of broth. 

To Prepare. Singe the chicken with a piece of blaz- 
ing newspaper to burn off the long hairs j remove all 
refuse or that which is not clear flesh, viz., pin-fea- 
thers, oil-bag, crop, lungs, kidneys, and, of course, the 
entrails if the fowl is not already drawn. If the pipes 
in the neck are not all drawn out with the crop, they 
may be easily taken away when the fowl is cut up. 
Scrub it well in cold water, and then disjoint and cut 
it into small pieces ; wash each piece thoroughly, re- 
taining the skin if it is clear and free from pin-fea- 
thers, otherwise removing it. Put the chicken into 
cold water and simmer it for two hours, then boil it 
for two hours. Finally strain it and remove the fat ; 
season it with salt and a bit of white pepper, and 
serve very hot in pretty china cups, with or without 
a lunch-cracker or a bit of dry toast. 



RECIPES 81 

With Herbs. Parsley, bay-leaves, sage, thyme, or 
a bouquet of sweet herbs will give a pleasant flavor 
to chicken broth. A teaspoon to a pint is the right 
proportion. 

With Grains or Vegetables. Rice may be used to ad- 
vantage in chicken broth, and also pearl-barley, sago, 
tapioca, and bread. These are among the best addi- 
tions of the kind that can be made, for with them one 
is able to preserve the light color so desirable in 
chicken broth. Onion, celery, and parsley in the pro- 
portion of one teaspoon to a pint are suitable vegeta- 
bles. Celery is especially nice. 



MUTTON BROTH 

One pound of mutton from the neck, or, better, the 
loin, one quart of cold water, and one teaspoon of 
chopped onion will be needed for this broth. Remove 
from the mutton the tough skin, the fat, and all 
membranes, aud cut the meat into small pieces ; break 
the bone, and if it be a part of the spinal column, take 
out the spinal cord. Put the pieces of meat, the onion, 
and the water into a saucepan, and simmer them to- 
gether for three hours : then strain out the meat, dip 
oif the fat from the broth with a spoon, and remove 
the remaining small particles with paper; season it 
with salt and white pepper. Serve hot in a pretty 
cup, with a toasted cracker. 

A little bunch of mint, a bouquet of herbs, a few 
bay-leaves, or a sprinkle of Cayenne pepper or curry- 
powder will vary the broth agreeably. Pearl-barley 
is a particularly good addition to make, or rice may 
be used in the proportion of one teaspoon to a pint. 



82 RECIPES 



OYSTER-TEA. No. 1 

Select eight fresh oysters, chop them fine in a chop- 
ping-tray, and turn them into a saucepan with a cup 
of cold water; set the saucepan on the fire, and let 
the water come slowly to the boiling-point, then sim- 
mer for five minutes; strain the liquid into a bowl, 
flavor it with half a saltspoon of salt, and serve hot 
with or without a small piece of dry toast, or a 
toasted cream -cracker. 



OYSTER-TEA. No. 2 

Put a dozen large oysters with their liquor into a 
stew-pan ; simmer for five minutes. Then strain the 
liquor, leaving out the oysters, and add to it one half 
cup of milk ; set it back on the stove and heat it just 
to the boiling-point. Flavor with a sprinkle of white 
pepper and half a saltspoon of salt. Or make it ac- 
cording to rule No. 1, using milk instead of water. 



CLAM BROTH 

Six large clams in their shells and a cup of water 
will be needed for this broth. Wash the clams thor- 
oughly with a brush, and place them with the water 
in a kettle over the fire. The broth is simply the 
juice of the clams with the water boiled for a minute. 
It does not require seasoning, as clam-juice is usually 
salt enough. As soon as the shells open, the broth is 
done. 

This broth and oyster-tea No. 1 are good in cases 
of nausea, and will be retained on the stomach when 
almost everything else is rejected. 



GRUELS 

Gruels are cooked mixtures of grain or flour, with 
water, or with water and milk. They are best made 
with milk as a part of the liquid, but care must be 
taken not to put it into the gruel until the grain has 
been thoroughly cooked in water, and after that the 
mixture should not be allowed to boil, as so high a 
temperature changes the flavor and composition of 
the milk, and renders it a less desirable food than 
if it were cooked at a lower temperature, — for in- 
stance, 190° or 200° Fahr. 

The largest constituent of grains is starch, which 
is not easily digested unless well cooked; therefore 
the time for boiling gruels should be conscientiously 
kept by the clock. Should the water evaporate, re- 
store to the original quantity before putting in the 
milk, which should be hot, though not boiling. It may, 
however, come just to the boiling-point without any 
special injury. 

Gruels served with a cream- or a banqnet-cracker 
or a square of toasted bread are excellent for a con- 
valescent's lunch. They may be varied with flavor- 
ings of cinnamon, nutmeg, almond, or a little grated 
lemon-peel, and sugar. Sugar is mentioned with 
great hesitancy, for a sweet gruel is an abomination, 
and yet a gruel with a very little sugar has a pleasanter 
flavor than one without any. 

Lacking color, gruels may be made attractive by 

83 



84 RECIPES 

serving them in dainty-hued china. Gruels should 
be drunk slowly, that the starch, which is partially 
digested by the action of saliva, may be thoroughly 
mixed with it before it is swallowed. 



BARLEY GRUEL 

1 Tablespoon of Robinson's barley-flour. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
J Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Cup of milk. 

Mix the flour, salt, and sugar together with a little 
cold water, pour on the boiling water, and boil ten 
minutes ; then add the milk, bring just to the boiling- 
point, strain, and serve very hot. This gruel may be 
made without the milk, but with a pint instead of a 
cup of water. Barley is a nutritious grain, rich in 
phosphates and protein. 



ARROWROOT GRUEL 

J Tablespoon of arrowroot. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
\ Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Cup of hot water. 
1 Cup of milk. 

Wet the arrowroot with the sugar and salt in two 
tablespoons of cold water, then pour on the hot water, 
stirring constantly. Boil it for twenty minutes, then 
add the milk and bring just to the boiling-point. 
Strain it, and immediately serve. 



RECIPES 85 

Arrowroot is almost pure starch. Its grains burst 
at 140° Fahr.; therefore, if boiling water be poured 
upon it, it will form into lumps which will have to be 
strained out, and thus a part of the material will be 
lost j hence the necessity of wetting it in cold water to 
reduce the temperature so that it may be stirred 
smooth before the lumps form. 

Milk is changed by long boiling, and loses some of 
its agreeable taste j it is better, therefore, not to put 
the milk into the gruel until after the flour has been 
thoroughly cooked in the water, thus preserving its 
natural flavor. 

Arrowroot gruel may be flavored with cinnamon 
by boiling a half square inch of cinnamon bark in the 
water with which the gruel is made. Nutmeg, lemon 
juice or peel, and sherry wine may also be used ; but 
the sherry should be avoided unless the gruel is to be 
served cold. 



OATMEAL GRUEL FROM POUNDED GRAIN 

Pound in a mortar or roll on a bread-board one cup 
of oatmeal until it is floury. Put it into a bowl, and 
fill the bowl with cold water ; stir well and let it set- 
tle for a few seconds; then pour off the milky-looking 
water into a saucepan, fill again, mix and pour off the 
water, and so continue uutil the water no longer ap- 
pears white, being careful at each pouring not to allow 
the brown cortex of the grain or any of the coarse 
portions to get out of the bowl; then boil the water 
for half an hour. For every pint put in a saltspoon 
of salt and half a cup of sweet cream, or, if that is not 
at hand, the same quantity of milk. Beef broth or wine 
may be used instead of cream. This is the best way 
to make oatmeal gruel, for by this method the coarse 



86 RECIPES 



and irritating hulls are excluded, while the good flavor 
and nutritious properties largely are preserved. 



OATMEAL GRUEL (Plain) 

2 Tablespoons of oatmeal (rolled oats). 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

£ Teaspoon of sugar. 

1 Cupful of boiling water. 

1 Cup of milk. 

Mix the oatmeal, salt, and sugar together, and pour 
on the boiling water. Cook it in a saucepan for thirty 
minutes, or in a double boiler two hours ; then strain 
it through a fine wire strainer to remove the hulls, put 
it again on the stove, add the milk, and allow it to 
heat just to the boiling-point. Serve it hot. Good 
oatmeal gruel may be made from cold porridge, by 
adding water, milk, and a little sugar and straining 
it, or it may be served unstrained. Many like it so, 
and it makes an excellent lunch. 



FLOUR GRUEL 

1 Tablespoon of flour. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

J Teaspoon of sugar. 

1 Cup of boiling water. 

1 Cup of milk. 

\ Square inch of cinnamon. 

Mix the flour, salt, and sugar, as for other gruels, 
into a paste with a little cold water ; add the piece of 
cinnamon and the hot water ; boil it for twenty min- 



RECIPES 87 

utes, slowly, so that it may not stick to the bottom of 
the pan and burn ; then put in the milk and bring to 
the boiling-point. Strain it, and serve it very hot. If 
the gruel is intended for a patient with fever, a lit- 
tle lemon-juice is good in place of the cinnamon. Other 
flavors may also be used, such as nutmeg, almond, and 
vanilla. 

CRACKER GRUEL 

2 Tablespoons of cracker-crumbs. 
\ Saltspoon of salt. 
\ Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
1 Cup of milk. 

To make the cracker-crumbs, roll some crackers on 
a board until they are fine. Most water-crackers 
are good, cream-crackers better; mix the salt and 
sugar with the crumbs, pour on the boiling water, 
put in the milk, and simmer it for two minutes. The 
gruel does not need long cooking, for the cracker- 
crumbs are already thoroughly cooked. Do not 
strain it. 

FARINA GRUEL 

Farina is a grain which is carefully prepared from 
the nitrogenous part of selected wheat, and is there- 
fore a better nutrient than rice-flour or arrowroot. 

1 Tablespoon of Hecker's farina. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
1 Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
1 Cup of milk. 



88 RECIPES 



Mix the grain, salt, and sugar together with two 
tablespoons of cold water, pour on the boiling water, 
and cook ten minutes j then put in the milk, boil for 
a minute, and it is ready to serve. 



IMPERIAL GRANUM 

Imperial Granum is a dainty, highly nutritious prep- 
aration of wheat, very useful for invalids and children. 

1 Tablespoon of Granum. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
1 Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
1 Cup of milk. 

Mix the meal, salt, and sugar in a saucepan with a 
little cold water, pour on the boiling water, and cook 
ten minutes ; then add the milk, and let it again reach 
the boiling-point, when it is ready to serve. 

Mush and porridge may also be made from this 
grain for the use of children, for whom it is an ex- 
cellent food, being similar to farina, but more delicate 
and easier of digestion. Imperial Granum may be 
obtained at any pharmacy. 



RACAHOUT DES ARABES 

1 Tablespoon of Racahout. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
1 Cup of hot water. 
1 Cup of milk. 

Put the Racahout and salt into a saucepan, mix it 
into a paste with a little cold water, and then pour on 



RECIPES 89 

the hot water; simmer for ten minutes. Have the 
milk scalding hot in another pan, and when the gruel 
has cooked the full time pour it in. Strain and serve. 
Racahout is a compound consisting principally of 
sugar, arrowroot, rice-flour, and French chocolate. 
It makes a most appetizing gruel, and is quite nu- 
tritious. Racahout des Arabes is imported largely 
from France. It may be obtained at any first-class 
grocery store. 

INDIAN-MEAL GRUEL 

2 Tablespoons of corn-meal. 
1 Tablespoon of flour. 
1 Teaspoon of salt. 
1 Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Quart of boiling water. 
1 Cup of milk. 

Make the corn-meal, flour, salt, and sugar into a thin 
paste with cold water, and pour into it the boiling 
water. Cook it in a double boiler for three hours. 
No less time than that will cook the corn-meal thor- 
oughly. Then add the milk, and it is ready to serve. 

Use the fine granulated meal which has been pre- 
pared for table use, and may be bought of almost any 
grocer. 



MUSH AND PORRIDGE 

Mush is meal or grain cooked in water to the con- 
sistency of rather thin pudding. Porridge is like 
mush, only thinner. The most important point con- 
nected with the preparation of these is thoroughness 
in the cooking. Made as they generally are of coarsely 
ground or of rolled grains, they need long boiling to 
soften the cellulose and to cook the starch properly. 

Oatmeal. Oatmeal should be cooked for at least 
three hours in a double boiler. It is at its best pre- 
pared the day before it is needed, and then reheated 
as it is wanted. If it is done in this way, the flavor 
is fine, and there is no danger that the grains will be 
hard. When taken from the kettle, the oatmeal should 
be of the consistency to pour, and on cooling it ought 
to form into a tender, jelly-like pudding. Sometimes 
oatmeal is cooked so that the grains are whole and 
separate, but it is not easily digested so, and lacks the 
delicious flavor which long cooking gives. 

Oatmeal for those for whom there is no objection 
to its use is a valuable nutrient, furnishing more for 
the money than almost any other food. 1 

i Composition of oatmeal : 

Nitrogenous matter 12.6% 

Carbohydrates, starch, etc 63.8% 

Fatty matter 5.6% 

Mineral matter 3.0% 

Water 15.0% 

Total 100.00% 

Letherby. 
From Prof. Mott's Chart of the Composition, Digestibility, and Nu- 
tritive Value of Food. 

90 



RECIPES 91 

Indian Meal. Indian meal also requires many hours' 
cooking. Even if it be in a single vessel and actually 
boiled, not less than an hour and a half of exposure 
to heat is safe. 

Farina. Farina having been already subjected to a 
high degree of heat in its preparation, is thereby par- 
tially cooked, and does not require as long a time as 
the raw grains. 

Mushes and porridges made from oatmeal, cracked 
wheat, or any grain on which the tough outside cov- 
ering remains, are to be avoided in all cases of irri- 
tation or disease of the alimentary canal, particularly 
in diseases of the intestines, for the hard hulls are 
very irritating to the delicate lining membranes. 
Young children have exceedingly delicate digestive 
powers, and are often made ill by coarse, starchy food. 
For them it is always safest to use the prepared 
grains, such as farina, grauula, and Imperial Granura. 

All of the grains given in these recipes may be 
made into porridges by following the rules given for 
mushes, except that a larger proportion of water 
should be used. Porridges are like mushes, only 
thinner. 

OATMEAL MUSH 

i Cup of rolled oats, or £ cup of granulated oatmeal. 

£ Teaspoon of salt. 

1 Pint of boiling water. 

Pick over the oatmeal, and put it into a double 
boiler with the salt. Pour on the boiling water, 
place the upper vessel of the boiler on the stove, and 
boil two minutes. This effectually starts the cooking. 
Then put the upper vessel into the lower, and cook 
for five hours. The water in the under boiler should 



92 EECIPES 

boil during this time, and will occasionally need re- 
plenishing. Serve the mush steaming hot with sugar 
and cream, and baked apples, apple sauce, or tart jelly 
if one is fond of something acid. 

If rolled oats be used, three hours are sufficient to 
cook it, but both kinds are best cooked the day before 
they are needed, as long cooking improves rather than 
injures the grain. 

FARINA 

Farina being a prepared grain and free from hulls 
and waste, so large a proportion will not be required 
to make a mush as of some grains. 

3 Tablespoons of farina. 

\ Teaspoon of salt. 

1 Pint of boiling water. 

Cook the mixture in a saucepan for twenty minutes 
after it actually boils, or in a double boiler for one 
hour. This is a delicious food for children, served 
with cream, or milk, and sugar. 

WHEAT GERM 

"Wheat germ is a delicate and nutritious prepara- 
tion of wheat. It is made so that by boiling for a 
short time it is ready for the table, and makes a de- 
licious breakfast dish. 

\ Cup of germ. 

\ Teaspoon ful of salt. 

1J Cups of boiling water. 

Boil in a saucepan without a cover for half an hour, 
or cook in a double boiler twice as long. The direc- 



RECIPES 93 



tions on the packages give a shorter time, but it is 
extremely doubtful whether this grain can be whole- 
some with the few minutes' cooking usually advised. 



IMPERIAL GRANUM 

Imperial Granum, cooked according to the above 
rule, is always a wholesome and safe dish for children; 
or it may be made into a very thin gruel, and used as 
a drink instead of water. 



GRANULA 

Granula is a breakfast grain which has been par- 
tially prepared by dry heat, and is almost cooked 
enough to use. It is sometimes recommended that it 
be prepared by simply boiling a minute in milk. It 
is, however, both softened and improved in flavor by 
boiling from ten to fifteen minutes in one and one 
half times its bulk of water, with salt in the propor- 
tion of a teaspoon to a cup of grain. 



CRACKED OR ROLLED WHEAT 

1 Cup of cracked wheat, 
1 Teaspoon of salt. 
3 Cups of water. 

Pick over the wheat, to remove any foreign sub- 
stance that may be in it, Put it with the salt and 
the water (boiling) into a double boiler, and cook for 
two hours. Serve with cream and sugar, either hot 
or cold. If it is desirable to have it cold, it may be 
molded in cups or small round jelly-molds. 



94 RECIPES 



INDIAN-MEAL MUSH 



1 Cup of corn-meal. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

1 Quart of boiling water. 

No. 1. Make the corn-meal and salt into a paste 
with a little cold water, then pour in the boiling 
water and cook it in a double boiler for five hours. 

No. 2. Put the salt into the water, and when the 
water reaches the boiling-point stir in the dry meal 
by taking a handful and sprinkling it slowly through 
the fingers. Use a wooden spoon for stirring. Boil 
an hour and a half. Or, wet the meal in a little cold 
water, and pour over it the boiling water. The most 
important point is thoroughness in the cooking, which 
should be done carefully so that the pudding may not 
burn on the bottom of the dish. If the temperature 
be regulated so that it just simmers, there will be lit- 
tle danger of this. Serve with maple syrup, or with 
cream. 

RICE 

£ Cup of rice. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

2 Cups of boiling water. 

Prepare the rice by removing from it all visible 
foreign substances, — bits of metal, chips, black ker- 
nels, etc. ; then wash it four times in cold water to 
take out dust, possible hairs, and bits of lint. Put the 
rice and salt in the upper vessel of a double boiler, 
pour in the boiling water and cook it one hour ivithout 
stirring. During this time the water in the under ves- 
sel should boil continuously, otherwise more than one 
hour will be necessary. Rice thus cooked is excellent. 



DRINKS 



EGG-NOG 



Break into a bowl one egg, add to it a saltspoon of 
salt and two teaspoons of sugar; beat it until it is 
light; then add one cup of cool milk — that is, milk 
which has not been excessively chilled (for it is not 
well to use that which is ice-cold) — and one or two 
tablespoons of French brandy ; mix and strain it into 
a tall slender glass, and serve at once. Egg-nog 
ought to be used very soon after it is made, for both 
the egg and the milk lose some of their freshness by 
exposure to the air. 



MILK-PUNCH 

1 Cup of milk. 

2 Tablespoons of brandy. 
1 Teaspoon of sugar. 

A little grated nutmeg. 

Sweeten the milk with the sugar, stir into it the 
brandy, and mix thoroughly by pouring from one 
glass to another. Then grate a bit of nutmeg over 
the top. 

Milk-punch is conveniently made with two tin cups; 
the mouth of one should be smaller than the mouth 
of the other, so that the one will fit into the other. 

95 



96 EECIPES 

In these the milk should be shaken back and forth 
until a froth is formed. This does not add materi- 
ally to the taste, but rather to the appearance, and 
thoroughly mixes in the sugar and brandy. 



WINE WHEY 

Warm one cup of milk to a little more than blood- 
heat, or 100° Fahr., then pour into it one half cup of 
sherry wine. The acid and alcohol of the wine will in a 
few minutes coagulate the albumen, which may be sep- 
arated from the whey by straining. Do not squeeze 
the curd through the strainer, but let the liquid drip 
until it is all out. If it is necessary to make the whey 
quickly, heat the milk to the boiling-point before add- 
ing the wine. 



WINE WHEY WITH RENNET 

(sweet whey) 

1 Pint of milk. 

1 Teaspoon of prepared rennet. 

2 Tablespoons of wine. 

Stir the rennet and wine into the milk quickly, so 
that the wine may not curdle the milk in blotches. 
Let it stand in a warm place (on the stove-hearth, for 
instance) for half an hour, and then separate the curd 
from the whey by straining. This whey is excellent 
for children with delicate digestion who need a little 
stimulant. It is very good also as a drink for invalids 
at any time. 

Whey is the water of milk with the sugar and 
various salts of the milk in solution in it. The sugar 



RECIPES 97 



furnishes some nutriment, and the salts supply some 
of the mineral matter needed in the body. 

Whey may also be made with vinegar or lemon- 
juice. These acids will act more quickly when the 
milk is warmed before they are added. 



LEMONADE 

1 Lemon. 

1J Tablespoons of sugar. 

1 Cup of boiling water. 

Wash and wipe a lemon, cut a very thin slice from 
the middle, and squeeze the rest into a bowl; then put 
in the sugar, pour on the boiling water, and strain it. 
When it has become cold, serve it in a tumbler with 
the slice of lemon floating on the top. 

Lemonade has a better flavor when made with 
boiling water, though it may be made with cold water. 
A few strawberries or raspberries may be put in, in- 
stead of the slice of lemon j or it may be colored pink 
with a little grape-jelly or carmine, and served with 
a straw. 

MILK LEMONADE 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
J Cup of lemon-juice. 
i Cup of sherry. 
1J Cups of cold milk. 

Pour the boiling water over the sugar, and then put 
in the lemon- juice and sherry. Stir it until the sugar 
dissolves, add the cold milk, and stir again until the 



98 RECIPES 

milk curdles, then strain through a jelly-bag or 
napkin. 

This is a cool and refreshing drink, especially for 
children. 

BRANDY-MILK WITH EGG 

Heat some milk in a granite saucepan for half an 
hour to sterilize it, but do not let it boil ; then pour 
it into a pitcher, and set it aside to cool. When the 
milk is cold, beat one egg with one tablespoon of 
sugar until the sugar is well mixed; add to it two 
tablespoons of brandy and a cup of the cold milk. 
Strain it into a tall slender glass, and serve at once. 

Heating the milk renders it perfectly wholesome 
and much safer for an invalid than raw milk, and also 
improves the flavor of the drink. 



SHERRY AND EGG 

Break an egg into a bowl, and put in a teaspoon of 
sugar; beat the two together until the sugar is 
thoroughly mixed with the egg y but not enough to 
make the egg froth; to this add two tablespoons of 
sherry wine, and a fourth of a cup of cold water, 
mixing them thoroughly. Strain all into a tumbler, 
and serve immediately. 



STERILIZED MILK 

The change which takes place in milk known as 
" souring" is caused by the growth of micro-organ- 
isms in it, which are killed by heat ; therefore, to pre- 
vent souring, milk must be subjected to a temperature 



RECIPES 99 

sufficiently high to insure their destruction. Some 
micro-organisms are killed at 136° Fahr., but this 
temperature cannot be said to destroy, or to inhibit 
the growth of all bacteria commonly found in milk. 
We must endeavor then to use such a degree of heat 
as shall accomplish this without seriously injuring the 
natural properties and flavors of the liquid. Authori- 
ties vary on this point, some putting the temperature 
as high as 212° Fahr., and others as low as 167° 
Fahr. The author has found, in an experience of 
two years in sterilizing milk every day, that 190° 
Fahr. is, under ordinary circumstances, a safe and 
easily practicable temperature to employ. With this 
degree of heat the flavor of the milk is excellent. 

The process is as follows : The milk is put into clean 
glass flasks or bottles with small mouths which are 
stoppered with plugs of cotton batting, or, as it is 
sometimes called, "cotton-wool." These are placed in 
a wire basket, and the basket immersed in a kettle of 
warm water, the temperature of which is not allowed 
to exceed 190° Fahr. As soon as the heat is at or near 
that point the time is marked, and the milk is kept 
at that temperature for one hour. Then the bottles 
are removed, cooled quickly, and placed in the re- 
frigerator. If it is desirable to keep the milk an in- 
definite time, the process should be repeated the second 
day, and again the third day, a third sterilization be- 
ing necessary to insure success, since spores of organ- 
isms may escape the first and even the second heating. 

For all ordinary household purposes, however, and 
as a safe food for the sick, heating once is all that is 
necessary. Milk thus treated will keep in the tempera- 
ture of an ordinary room, even in warm weather, from 
twenty to thirty hours. By using the small-mouthed 
flasks very little scum is formed, and thus most 
of the nitrogenous portion is preserved in the milk. 

Lore. 



100 RECIPES 

Also, a small quantity at a time may be used with- 
out disturbing the rest. 

To Sterilize for Family Use. Milk may also be pre- 
served by open sterilization in a saucepan or kettle 
by the following simple process : Heat the milk until 
a scum forms over it; keep it at, or near, the tem- 
perature it then has for one hour, then pour it into a 
thoroughly washed and scalded pitcher, cool it, and 
put it into a refrigerator or some cool place. It will 
remain sweet for twenty-four hours, and, unless the 
weather be very warm, it will be good at the end of 
thirty-six hours. Should it sour before the end of 
twenty-four hours, it indicates that the temperature 
was to© low, or the time of exposure to the heat too 
short. A chemist's thermometer costs but little, and 
will be found very useful for testing milk. It should 
be borne in mind, in this connection, that milk is not 
rendered absolutely sterile, — that is, free from all pos- 
sible organisms and spores which may occur in it, — 
except at a temperature of at least 212° Fahr., or even 
higher. 

Sterilized milk diluted with water is a nutritious 
and wholesome drink for the sick. Of course the 
water with which it is diluted should be boiled. 1 

In hospital practice nurses have told me that pa- 
tients suffering from sleeplessness will often fall into 
quiet slumber after drinking hot milk, and that not 
infrequently the ordered hypodermic of morphine is 
not needed when hot milk is used. 

MILK AND SELTZER 

Mix equal quantities of sterilized milk and seltzer- 
water. Drink immediately. 

i For a further account of micro-organisms in milk, see the chap- 
ter on Milk. 






RECIPES 101 



MILK AND SODA-WATER 

Into a glass half full of fresh milk put an equal 
quantity of soda-water. Use at once. This is an 
agreeable way to take milk, and is a nutritious and 
refreshing drink. 



TOAST-WATER 

Cut three slices of bread each a third of an inch 
thick, and toast them slowly until very brown and 
dry throughout; break them into small pieces, put 
them into a bowl with a pint of cold water, and set 
aside to soak for an hour; at the end of that time 
turn it into a strainer or napkin, and squeeze out the 
liquid with the back of a spoon. To the water thus 
obtained add a little cream and sugar, and serve it cold 
in a tumbler. It may also be served without the 
cream. 



BARLEY-WATER 

1 Tablespoon of barley flour. 
1 Teaspoon of sugar. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
1 Quart of water. 

Boil the flour, water, sugar and salt together fifteen 
minutes, and strain. 

Barley-water may also be made by boiling two 
tablespoons of barley (the grain) in a quart of water 
for one hour. A teaspoonful of lemon-juice or tama- 
rind-juice may be used as flavoring. 



102 RECIPES 



RICE-WATER 



Pick over and wash two tablespoons of rice; put it 
into a granite saucepan with a quart of boiling water; 
simmer it for two hours, when the rice should be 
softened and partially dissolved ; then strain the li- 
quid through a fine wire strainer into a bowl or 
pitcher, add to it a saltspoon of salt, and serve it 
either warm or cold. 

If a patient may take or needs stimulants, two ta- 
blespoons of sherry or of port wine is an agreeable 
addition, especially if the drink be taken cold. 



FRUIT JUICE FOR USE WITH SODA-WATER. No. 1 

From Strawberries. Eemove the stems from one 
quart of strawberries, and pick them over carefully. 
Wash them under a stream of water in a colander, 
gently, so that they may not be crushed; then put 
them into a double boiler with half their bulk of sugar, 
and heat for an hour or more until the berries are 
soft. When this is accomplished, turn them into a 
jelly-bag and drain until the juice has completely 
oozed out, which will require two or more hours. Do 
not squeeze them. Then put the juice into a sauce- 
pan and, returning to the fire, heat it to a temperature 
of 205° Fahr., and keep it at that temperature for one 
hour. If a thermometer is not at hand, heat the juice 
until it steams a little, but do not let it boil, for the 
flavor is not nearly so delicate with the high tempera- 
ture. Then it may be canned or bottled for future 
use. If the bottle be scalded and carefully sealed as 
in preserving fruits, the juice will keep indefinitely. 

The length of time that it remains at 205° is impor- 



RECIPES 103 

tant, as it is a process of sterilization which takes 
place, and the temperature must be maintained for a 
given time or the desired result will not be accom- 
plished. The condition of the bottle also must be 
carefully .considered, as the thorough cleaning and 
scalding is for the purpose of rendering it sterile. 
This is most easily and thoroughly done by filling 
the bottle with hot water and placing it in a kettle of 
boiling water for half an hour. 

To Use. Dilute the juice with cool water (not iced 
water) or soda-water in the proportion of one half 
juice to one half water. 

From Oranges. The oranges should be peeled and the 
seeds removed, and then treated in the same way as the 
strawberries in the preceding rule, except that to every 
quart of fruit the juice of two lemons should be added. 

From Raspberries. Employ the same method as for 
strawberries. 

From Currants. The same as for strawberries, ex- 
cept that three fourths of the bulk of the fruit of 
sugar should be used instead of one half. 

With Other Fruits. Other fruits, such as apricots, 
peaches, cranberries, apples, etc., may be used for 
syrups, varying the water and sugar according to the 
kind of fruit used. Apples, apricots, and peaches 
will require half their bulk of water. 



FRUIT JUICE FOR USE WITH SODA-WATER. No. 2 

Sprinkle two cups of sugar over one box of ripe 
strawberries, which, of course, have been hulled and 
washed, and set them away for three hours, or until 
the juice has oozed out of the fruit and made a thick 
syrup with the sugar. Strain the juice, bottle it, and 
put it in a cool place. It will keep for three days. 



104 EECIPES 

To Use. Pour one third of a cup into a tumbler, 
add two tablespoons of cream, and fill the tumbler 
with soda-water from a siphon. This makes a de- 
licious and cooling drink. 

Oranges, raspberries, currants, or any other juicy 
fruit may be used for syrup, which is very palatable 
when made from fresh uncooked fruits. These syrups 
are useful not only for drinks, but for flavoring ice- 
creams and pudding sauces. 



COFFEE SYRUP 

Make some strong coffee with two tablespoons of 
the ground berry (Mocha and Java mixed), a little 
white of egg, and one cup of boiling water. Simmer 
together one cup of sugar and one third of a cup of 
water for five minutes, then add to it one half of a cup 
of the coffee. Strain and bottle it for use. This is 
delicious with soda-water and cream. 



VANILLA SYRUP 

Make a sugar syrup by boiling together one cup of 
sugar and one half of a cup of w T ater for five minutes. 
Add to it two or three tablespoons of vanilla extract. 
It is to be used, like coffee syrup, with soda-water and 
sweet cream. 

OTHER SYRUPS 

A variety of syrups may be made, besides those men- 
tioned, by using a sugar syrup like that in the above 
recipe, and flavoring it with cinnamon, lemon, al- 
mond, rose-water, chocolate, etc. All of the cooked 
syrups will keep indefinitely. 



RECIPES 105 



GRAPE JUICE 

Grape juice mixed with cold water or with soda-water 
makes a pleasant and invigorating drink for a sick per- 
son. The best grapes for the purpose are the blue varie- 
ties, such as Isabellas, Concords, or Black Hamburgs. 

To Make a Bottle of Juice. Pick over (and wash if 
they need it) one quart of grapes. Remove them from 
the stems, and put them into a double boiler with 
just enough cold water to cover them. Heat them 
slowly until the juice oozes out and the fruit becomes 
soft, which will take two or three hours. Then turn 
the fruit into a jelly-bag made like a long pointed 
pocket, draw the string at the top and hang it to 
drain. Do not squeeze or press the bag, and use only 
the juice which drips out, which will practically be all 
that the grapes contain. To this add one fourth of 
the quantity of sugar — that is, if there is a quart of 
juice, put in one cup of sugar — and heat it until it is 
quite hot, or to a temperature of 210° Fahr., and keep 
it at that temperature for one hour, but do not let 
it boil. Then pour it into thoroughly cleaned and 
scalded hot bottles, — in other words, those which are 
sterile. Seal the bottles with wax, and set them away 
in a cool place. 

To Use. Mix equal quantities of juice and cold 
water, and serve at once. 



FLAXSEED TEA WITH LEMON 



1 Tablespoon of flaxseed. 

1 Pint of water. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

1 Tablespoon of lemon -juice. 



106 RECIPES 

Boil the flaxseed one hour in the water $ strain it, 
and add the lemon -juice and sugar. The flaxseed 
should be examined for little black grains which often 
occur in it, and which injure the delicate flavor of the 
drink. Serve this tea either cold or warm. The loss 
by evaporation should be made good from time to time, 
so that at the end of the cooking there shall be one pint 
of tea. 

APPLE TEA 

Wash and wipe a good sour apple, cut it into small 
pieces, and boil it in a cup of water until it is soft. 
Then # strain the water into a bowl, add a bit of sugar, 
and serve when cold. 

If the apple is of good flavor this is a pleasant drink, 
and may be given to fever patients, children with 
measles, or whenever there is much thirst. 



KUMISS 



1 Quart of perfectly fresh milk. 

■§- of a two-cent cake of Fleischmann's yeast. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 



Dissolve the yeast in a little water and mix it with 
the sugar and milk. Put the mixture into strong 
bottles, — beer-bottles are good, — cork them with 
tightly fitting stoppers, and tie down securely with 
stout twine. Shake the bottles for a full minute to 
mix thoroughly the ingredients, then place them 
on end in a refrigerator, or some equally cool place, 
to ferment slowly. At the end of three days lay 
the bottles on their sides; turn them occasionally. 
Five days will be required to perfect the fermenta- 
tion, and then kumiss is at its best. It will keep in- 
definitely in a refrigerator. 



EECIPES 107 

To Make Sweet Kumiss. Ferment the kumiss mix- 
ture for twelve hours in a temperature of 70° Fahr., — 
that is, the same degree of heat that is required for 
raising bread. 

Do not attempt to open a bottle of kumiss without 
a champagne-tap, for the carbonic acid generated in 
the fermenting liquid has enormous expansive force, 
and will throw the contents all over the room if the 
bottle be opened in the ordinary way. 

In an emergency, however, the cork may be punc- 
tured with a stout needle to let the gas escape. The 
mouth of the bottle may then be held in a large bowl 
or dish and the cords cut, when the kumiss will rush 
out, usually, however, without so much force but that 
it may nearly all be caught. It should look like thick, 
foamy cream. 

Kumiss is highly recommended as an article of sick 
diet, being especially valuable for many forms of in- 
digestion and for nausea. Often it will be retained 
in the stomach when almost anything else would be 
rejected. It is partially predigested milk, containing 
carbonic acid and a little alcohol, both of which have 
a tonic effect. 

True kumiss is an Eastern product made from mare's 
milk, but in this country cow's milk is always em- 
ployed. Sometimes the term kefer is given to it, when 
kefer grains are used for the fermentation. It may 
be obtained in nearly all pharmacies, but a better 
quality can be made at home at slight expense. 

Sometimes patients will object to taking kumiss, on 
account of the odor, which is not pleasant to every one, 
but it leaves a peculiarly agreeable after-taste in the 
mouth, and one who has once taken a glass of it will 
seldom refuse a second offer. Kumiss has consider- 
able dietetic value, being useful in various forms of 
indigestion. 



108 RECIPES 



THE COCOA-BEAN 

The cocoa-bean is a product of the tropics. It is 
dried, roasted like coffee, and cracked, or ground into 
powder, for use. It is one of our best foods, contain- 
ing in good proportions nearly all the elements neces- 
sary to nourish the body. 

There are many preparations of the bean. The 
most common, and those usually found in our markets, 
are shells, cracked cocoa, chocolate, and various forms 
of powder. 

Shells are the outer husk or covering of the bean, 
and from them a delicate drink may be made with 
long, slow boiling. 

Cracked cocoa, or cocoa-nibs as it is sometimes called, 
is made by breaking the beans into small pieces. 

Chocolate is prepared by grinding the cocoa-bean 
into powder, mixing it with sugar, and molding it 
into blocks. There is some temptation on the part of 
manufacturers to substitute foreign fats, corn-starch, 
and other cheap materials for the natural ingredients 
of the bean in the making of chocolate. 

The powdered forms of cocoa generally contain a 
good percentage of the bean except the fat, which is 
always extracted. All Dutch brands are excellent. 
Weight for weight, they cost more than some other 
kinds, but so much less is needed to make a cup of 
drink that they are really the least expensive. 

COCOA 

J Teaspoon of any Dutch cocoa. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
1 Cup of boiling milk. 
1 Tablespoon of sugar. 



RECIPES 109 

Put the cocoa and sugar into a saucepan, and pour 
in the boiling water j cook for two minutes, then add 
the milk, and let it heat just to the boiling-point. 
When most other brands are used, as a general thing 
a larger proportion of powder will be necessary. It 
is therefore important to experiment with each until 
it is found what amount will make a drink equal in 
strength to the above. This valuable food is often 
made so strong that ill persons cannot digest it. 



COCOA-SHELLS 

Put two tablespoons of shells into a pint of water, and 
simmer for two hours; add one tablespoon of sugar 
and a cup of milk, heat to boiling, strain out the shells, 
and it is ready to serve. This is a delicately flavored 
drink, and may be used freely in cases of great thirst. 



COCOA-NIBS 

Boil one tablespoon of cracked cocoa in a pint of 
water one hour ; then add a cup of milk and a table- 
spoon of sugar, let it heat to the boiling-point again, 
strain out the nibs, and it is ready to serve. 

It is necessary to boil cracked cocoa, otherwise you 
will have a bitter infusion, lacking the good flavor 
which is extracted by the higher degree of heat. This 
is an instance in which a few degrees more or less 
of heat make a great difference in the result. 



CHOCOLATE 

Put one third of a square (one ounce) of Baker's 
chocolate, with one cup of boiling water and a table- 



110 



EECIPES 



spoon of sugar, into a saucepan. Set the saucepan 
on the fire, and stir for a while, moving the piece of 
chocolate through the water occasionally until it is 
melted. As soon as it boils add a cup of milk, and 
when it again reaches the boiling-point it will be 
ready to serve. If chocolate is allowed to boil for a 
length of time, separation of the fat from the other 
ingredients takes place, rendering it indigestible. 
Chocolate, if delicately and carefully made, is as nice 
as cocoa, much more nutritious, on account of the fat 
which it contains, and less expensive. 



TEA 



Tea has refreshing and invigorating properties very 
comforting to one spent with toil. Its active prin- 
ciple is theine, a crystalline alkaloid found in both 
tea and coffee. Theine and caffeine were once sup- 
posed to be different substances, but have recently 
been found to be identical. 

Tea is a valuable article of diet, though not a 
direct nutrient. It is classed with the so-called " ac- 
cessory" foods, and, although not itself nutritious, 
aids, by its good flavor and stimulating properties, 
the digestion of other things. It is a nerve tonic, and 
is quite valuable as a curative agent for headache and 
some forms of indigestion. The slight stimulation 
resulting from its use is unattended by any after ill 
effects, unless it be taken in excessive quantities. 

It is good for soldiers, hard-working people, travel- 
ers, and others who are much exposed to the rigors 
of climate. 1 

i George Kennan, in his accounts of his perilous journeyings through 
Siberia, hears ample testimony to the comforting effects of hot tea. 
Often when he and his companion were chilled through, and almost 
dead with cold and fatigue, after many hours' travel over the frozen 
snows, they were revived by draughts of hot tea provided at the 
stations. 



RECIPES 111 



COMPOSITION OF TEA 

Black. Green. 

Essential oil 60 79 

Chlorophyl 1.84 2.22 

Wax 28 

Eesin 3.64 2.22 

Gum 7.28 8.56 

Tannin 12.88 17.80 

Theine 46 43 

Extractive matter 21.36 22.80 

Coloring substances 19.19 23.60 

Albumen 2.80 3.00 

Fiber 28.33 17.80 

Ash* 5.24 5.56 

MULDEN. 

From Prof. Mott's Chart on the Composition, Digestibility, 
and Nutritive Value of Food. 

Two of the most important points suggested by a 
study of tea are the few adulterations and the great dif- 
ference between different varieties, comparing weight 
and bulk. Some kinds of very cheap tea are adulter- 
ated with sage and raspberry leaves, and leaves of 
other plants dried to simulate tea, and often flavored 
with essences to give an agreeable taste, but a vast 
amount of the tea which is sold is pure. Adulterations 
with chemicals are now rare, on account of the exten- 
sive cultivation of tea and the large quantities sold. 

Teas vary greatly in weight, — that is, a given bulk 
of one tea weighs very differently from the same bulk 
of another. This is especially marked in the com- 
parison of Oolong and Gunpowder. 

Below are given the weights of a moderate-sized 
caddy-spoon of each of these teas. 

n^r.i^c No. of spoons 
kinds of tea. Grains. t0 thep Z un d. 

Oolong 39 179 

Hyson 66 106 

Gunpowder 123 57 

i The ash of tea contains potash, soda, magnesia, phosphoric acid, 
chlorin, carbonic acid, iron, silica, and traces of manganese. 



112 RECIPES 

From this it appears that Gunpowder tea, bulk for 
bulk, is more than three times as heavy as Oolong; 
consequently in using it only about one third as much 
should be taken for a given amount of water. In mak- 
ing the infusion teas should be weighed, not measured, 
but it is not easily practicable in all households to do 
so; however, it can always be borne in mind that the 
closely rolled teas, such as Gunpowder, Young Hyson, 
and Japan, should be used in smaller proportion than 
those which are loosely rolled, like Oolong, English 
Breakfast, and other black teas. 

There is a popular notion that green teas are dried 
on copper, but according to unquestionable authorities 
it is anr erroneous one. Green teas are dried quickly 
so that the natural color of the leaves is preserved. 
Black teas are dried slowly for many hours until a 
sort of fermentation sets in, which causes the differ- 
ence in color, as pickings from the same plant may, 
in the process of curing, become either green or black 
tea, according to the method employed. Also, dif- 
ferent varieties of tea may be made from the same 
branch by difference of treatment in curing, the aro- 
matic flavors, which did not exist in the leaves before, 
being produced by the drying. Different varieties or 
kinds of tea are also made from the same plant by 
gathering the leaves at different ages. 

Black tea should be black, but not dead black, — ra- 
ther of a grayish hue. No red leaves should be mixed 
with it. It should be regular in appearance, each leaf 
with a uniform twist, that is, in all except the " broken " 
teas. The leaves of tea are gathered four times a year 
by hand, and the finest kind is made from the tender 
young buds. Young Hyson is made from the early 
buds of April, and is noted for its mild, delicate flavor. 

The principle most to be avoided in tea is the tan- 
nin, which in any considerable quantity is injurious 



RECIPES 113 

to health. It dissolves easily when tea is either 
steeped for a length of time, or boiled. The important 
point, therefore, is not to make tea more than a few 
minutes before it is to be drunk, and not to boil it. 

The principal kinds of tea in common use are 
Oolong, Japan, English Breakfast, Imperial, Gun- 
powder, and Young Hyson. Gunpowder, Japan, 
Young Hyson, and Imperial are green teas; the others 
are black. 

To Prepare Tea. 

J Teaspoon of tea. 

1 Cup of boiling water. 

Fill a cup with boiling water, and let it stand a 
minute, or until the cup is heated through. Then 
empty it, put the quantity of tea into a tea-ball, 
place it in the hot cup, and pour on the boiling water 
slowly until it is full, leaving the tea-ball in for three 
minutes. This will give you a delicious and fragrant 
drink. If there is not a tea-ball at hand, use a small 
strainer, holding it so that the tea is under water for 
the required time. 

The same principle is to be followed in making a 
pot of tea, except that the time of steeping should be 
somewhat longer. Scald the pot, which should be 
either of silver, granite-ware, or earthenware, not tin. 
Put into it the tea, in the proportions indicated for 
a cup of water (one half pint), and let it infuse for 
five minutes, but by no means allow it to boil, for boil- 
ing dissipates the aroma, and extracts the tannin, 
which is the injurious principle. Serve it in hot tea- 
cups with loaf-sugar and cold cream or milk. The 
amount of tea required for a cup of water varies with 
the quality of the tea, the finer kinds requiring less 
than the cheaper grades. 



L14 RECIPES 

Water for tea should be fresh, and soft water — that 
is, water which is free from lime — is preferable; by- 
taking one-half teaspoon of tea and a cup of water as the 
unit, any amount may be made; for instance, for a pot 
of tea for five or six persons, three teaspoons of tea and 
a quart and a half (6 cups) of water will be required. 
The time of exposure to the heat is, of course, not 
multiplied, the same number of minutes being enough 
for a greater or a lesser amount. 

In connection with the study of tea, it is a very 
interesting fact that most authorities agree as to the 
time of steeping. There seems to be the unanimous 
opinion that it should not exceed fifteen minutes. Five 
minutes is the usual time given for the average kinds 
of tea, but for the fine, pure teas from eight to ten is 
a wise rule to follow. 

COFFEE 

Coffee is a product of the East, where it has been 
used since very ancient times. It grows on trees, the 
fruit in clusters which singly look somewhat like 
cherries, each containing two beans. Unroasted coffee- 
beans are tough, and a drink made from them is bit- 
ter, acrid, and very unpleasant. Coffee was brought 
to western Europe in the seventeenth century, where it 
seems to have immediately become a popular drink. 
When coffee-houses were first opened in England, 
they were opposed by the liquor-dealers, who claimed 
that their trade would be spoiled. Its introduction was 
also bitterly opposed by others, and even denounced 
from the pulpit. It was regarded somewhat in the 
light of a dangerous Eastern drug. From western 
Europe it was brought to America, and at the present 
time is the most extensively used food beverage in 
the world. 



RECIPES 115 

The kinds in common use in this country are Java 
and Mocha from the East, and the South American 
coffees Rio, Santos, and Maracaibo. The soil and 
method of cultivation influence the quality of coffee, 
as does also the age of the beans. The longer the 
beans are kept (unbrowned) the finer the flavor. 

Coffee is adulterated with grains of different kinds, 
chicory, caramel, carrots and some other roots, and 
with pastes made to resemble the coffee-bean. The 
use of chicory is prohibited by law, unless the mixture 
be labeled " Mixture of coffee and chicory." Never- 
theless, its use is common, and in nearly all hotels 
and restaurants coffee is flavored with it. 

"The detection of the presence of chicory, caramel, 
and some sweet roots, as turnips, carrots, and parsnips, 
is quite easy. If a few grains of the suspected sam- 
ple are placed on the surface of water in a glass ves- 
sel, beaker, or tumbler, each particle of chicory, etc., 
will become surrounded by a yellow-brown cloud 
which rapidly diffuses through the water until the 
whole becomes colored. Pure coffee under the same 
conditions gives no sensible color until after the 
lapse of about fifteen minutes. Caramel (burnt sugar) 
of course colors the water very deeply. Dandelion 
root gives a deeper color than coffee, but not as deep 
as chicory. The same is true of bread raspings. 
Beans and pease give much less color to the water 
than pure coffee. They can be readily detected by 
the microscope, as can roasted figs and dates or date- 
stones." (Mrs. Richards, in "Food Materials and 
Their Adulterations.") 

Coffee is said to owe its refreshing properties to (a) 
caffeine, (6) a volatile oil developed by heat, not con- 
tained in the unroasted bean, and to (c) astringent 
acids. 

Coffee diminishes the sensation of hunger, exhilar- 



116 RECIPES 

ates and ref reshes, and decreases the amount of wear 
and tear of the system. 
Its composition, according to Payen, is as follows: 

Cellulose 34.000 

Water 12.000 

Fatty matter 13.000 

Glucose, dextrine, and undetermined vegetable acids 15.500 

Legumin, casein, etc 10.000 

Chlorogenate of potash and caffeine 3 to 5.000 

Nitrogenized structure " 3.000 

Caffeine 800 

Essential oil .001 

Aromatic essence 002 

Mineral substances 6.970 

It is difficult to determine whether coffee may be 
classed as a food, but that it has value as an adjunct 
to true nutrients there can be no doubt. There is 
a general agreement among physiologists that cof- 
fee is invigorating, that it aids digestion both in the 
sick and the well, that it is capable of allaying or 
retarding waste and thereby acting indirectly as a 
food. But the mistake should not be made that cof- 
fee will replace food. Coffee may be compared in its 
effects on the system to beef -tea — it is valuable for its 
flavors rather than for actual nutritious principles. 

It is a curious fact that coffee is most frequently 
made in such a way that its valuable flavors are un- 
developed or destroyed. Care must be taken that 
the roasting be not carried so far as to char the cof- 
fee-beans, yet far enough to convert the sugar into 
caramel, and to change the nature of the volatile oil, 
so that the highest point of flavor will be reached. 
This can be best accomplished in regular roasting- 
houses, where the temperature and time may be 
accurately measured. 

It is best to get a supply of fresh roasted coffee 
every day, but when this is not practicable, once in 



RECIPES 117 

three days, or once a week, will do. Although theo- 
retically the roasting of coffee should be a part of its 
preparation — that is, it should be roasted, immedi- 
ately ground, and made into drink — practically it is 
very seldom done. 

COFFEE. No. 1 

A favorite mixed coffee is made with two thirds 
Java ami one third Mocha. It should be ground just 
before it is needed. For a pot of coffee use the pro- 
portions of one heaped tablespoon to a cup of water. 
It is well to calculate the number of persons there are 
to be served, and allow one cup (one half pint) for each ; 
this amount, with the milk or cream used, will make 
two ordinary china cups of coffee. To the ground 
coffee add a little yolk or white of egg, with a spoon- 
ful of water to dilute it ; mix thoroughly until all the 
grains are coated over with albumen, then pour on the 
boiling water, simmer for five minutes, and steep at 
a temperature just short of simmering for ten min- 
utes more. The coffee is then done. It should be 
served at once with loaf-sugar, and either hot or cold 
cream, or hot milk. The coffee should be perfectly 
clear and of fine color and flavor. 

There are many methods of making coffee, but the 
above, everything considered, seems the most desirable 
for family use. One egg is enough to clear three quarts 
of coffee, and both yolk and white are of equal value 
for the purpose. 

COFFEE. No. 2 

For every cup of water use a heaped tablespoon of 
coffee ; soak the coffee overnight or for several hours 
in cold water, then bring it to the boiling-point, and 
let it simmer for a few minutes just before using. 



118 RECIPES 

This is said to be the most economical method of mak- 
ing, as more is obtained from the coffee by this treat- 
ment. The flavor is certainly fine. 

Long boiling dissipates the delicious aromatic oils, 
and as probably these are the most valuable properties 
of the coffee, the necessity of preserving them is easily 
seen. Care should be taken not to boil coffee for more 
than from three to five minutes, and simmer rather 
than boil, so as to preserve as much as possible the fine 
flavors which are so quickly dissipated by boiling ; yet 
the high temperature seems to be necessary to extract 
the desirable properties of the bean. One must there- 
fore ever bear in mind the seeming paradox that coffee 
should reach the boiling-point, and yet not boil. 

We do not estimate highly enough the value of 
flavors. It is a well- demonstrated fact among a few 
persons that many dishes containing actual nutri- 
tious principles are but partially or imperfectly di- 
gested, because of their lack of good flavor, either 
from want of proper preparation, lack of seasoning, 
or poor cooking. There is no doubt that many peo- 
ple suffer from indigestion after eating such food. 

Use in coffee-making either silver, granite-ware, or 
earthenware urns or pots, never tin. They should 
be made perfectly clean before using, especial atten- 
tion being necessary for the spout. 



MULLED WINE 

lEgg. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

1 Clove. 

i Square inch of cinnamon. 

J Cup of wine. 

i Cup of water. 



RECIPES 119 

Put the water and spice together in a saucepan, and 
boil for ten minutes; then add the wine, and let the 
liquid just reach the boiling-point; meanwhile beat 
the egg and sugar in a bowl, and just at the moment 
when the wine begins to boil, pour it slowly into the 
egg, stirring constantly to distribute the heat through- 
out the whole. Unless the weather is very cold, there 
is usually enough heat in the boiling liquid to coagu- 
late the albumen of the egg slightly, but should this 
not be accomplished, set it on the fire for a minute to 
finish. When done it should be of the consistency of 
cream. Do not let the wine and water boil for any 
appreciable time, for boiling dissipates some of the 
pleasant flavor of the wine. 

Beer, ale, and porter are excellent, mulled in the 
same way. 

COCOA CORDIAL 

£ Teaspoon of Dutch cocoa. 
Some boiling water. 
2 Blocks of loaf-sugar. 
2 Tablespoons of port wine. 

Put the cocoa and sugar into a china cup, and pour 
directly upon them some boiling water, then add the 
wine, making in all the usual amount served in a cup. 
Use immediately. This is an excellent drink for those 
who are chilled or exhausted, or to take after a bath. 



JELLIES 

(from gelatine) 

Gelatin is always of animal origin. The gelatinous 
substance obtained from apples, grapes, cranberries, 
and other fruits is not gelatin; it is a different ma- 
terial, derived by the action of heat from pectose, a 
substance which occurs in plants and is closely asso- 
ciated with cellulose. Unprepared gelatin is some- 
times distinguished in writing from the gelatine of 
commerce by the difference of an e in spelling. 

Gelatin enters into the composition of all, or nearly 
all, the tissues of the body. The walls of the micro- 
scopic cells of flesh are composed of it. It is found 
also in cartilage, tendons, connective tissue, bone, and 
in the larynx and joints. Spiders' webs and the thread 
of silkworms are gelatin in a liquid state, which so- 
lidifies upon exposure to the air. Another kind of 
gelatin forms the framework of insects, such as the 
locusts on which John the Baptist fed. It also forms 
the true skeleton of lobsters, crabs, and shrimps. 
The edible birds' nests of the Chinese are a delicate 
kind of gelatin more digestible than some other kinds, 
for it is made from the saliva of a swallow, and prob- 
ably contains pepsin. (M. Williams.) 

The part which gelatin plays as a food is not well 
understood. Many experiments have recently been 
made by scientists on dogs and other animals, to test 
the value of gelatin in this respect. From these ex- 
periments the following conclusions have been drawn : 

120 



RECIPES 121 

1. That gelatin alone is not sufficient as a food. 2. 
That although insufficient it is not worthless. 3. That 
gelatin is sufficient to sustain life when combined 
with other substances which would themselves be 
wholly insufficient if given alone. 4. That gelatin 
must always be flavored to render it digestible and 
nutritious. 

Mattieu Williams says: "It would seem that gela- 
tin alone, although containing the elements required 
for nutrition, needs something more to render it di- 
gestible. We shall probably not be far from the truth 
if we picture it to the mind as something too smooth, 
too neutral, too inert, to set the digestive organs at 
work, and that therefore it requires the addition of a 
decidedly sapid something that shall make these or- 
gans act." 

(Jelatin dissolves easily in warm liquid. Albumen 
coagulates under similar circumstances. 

The gelatine of commerce is made from the tissues 
of animals, particularly from the thick skin of certain 
portions of the body and from the head and feet. 
When well flavored and in a Liquid state as in broths, 
or of a tender consistency as in well-made jelly, it is 
a most desirable food for the sick. Lemon and orange 
juice, strawberry, raspberry, grape, and indeed any 
fruit syrup, coffee, cocoa, vanilla, wine, brandy, and 
Jamaica, rum, and strong meat broths which have 
been cleared, may be used for flavoring. The jelly 
should not be made hard and tenacious, but tender 
and jelly-like, though firm. 

The phosphated gelatine which may be bought of 
any grocer is delicious for wine jelly made accord- 
ing to the usual rule for jelly, with the exception of 
omitting the lemon. There are many good preparations 
of gelatine in market. AH jellies made with gelatine 
are excellent for invalids. They are especially vain- 



122 EECIPES 

able in cases of disease of the intestines, such as 
typhoid fever and inflammation of the bowels, be- 
cause, being digested and absorbed, for the most 
part or entirely, in the stomach, those organs are re- 
lieved of effort, at the same time that the system is 
supplied with a nutritious form of solid food. 



WINE JELLY. No. 1 

J Box of gelatine, 
i Cup of cold water. 
1J Cups of boiling water. 
i Cup of sugar. 
J Square inch of cinnamon. 
1 Clove. 
i Cup of sherry wine. 

Put the gelatine and cold water together in a dish 
large enough to hold the whole mixture; let it 
soak for half an hour; then pour the boiling water, 
in which the clove and cinnamon have been sim- 
mering, over the softened gelatine, add the sugar 
and wine, and stir until the sugar and gelatine are 
perfectly dissolved; then strain through a fine nap- 
kin into a granite-ware or earthenware pan or mold, 
and cool it in a refrigerator or in a pan of iced 
water. Wine jelly made from phosphated gelatine, 
omitting the spice, is delicious. 



WINE JELLY (No. 2) WITH LEMON 

The same proportions and ingredients are to be 
used as in the above recipe, except that the juice of 
half a lemon should be substituted for the spice. 



RECIPES 123 



LEMON JELLY 



J Box of gelatine. 
J Cup of cold water. 
1J Cups of boiling water. 
J Cup of sugar. 
J Cup of lemon-juice. 
1 Tablespoon of brandy. 

Put the gelatine and water together in a dish, and 
let them soak half an hour; then pour on the boiliug 
water, and stir until the gelatine is dissolved. Do 
not put in the sugar and then pour on the boiling 
water, as there may not be heat enough in making a 
small quantity of jelly to dissolve both, but add the 
sugar after the water, then the lemon-juice and 
brandy. Strain it through a napkin and cool it in a 
refrigerator or in a pan of iced water. Use china or 
granite-ware molds, never tin, for the acid of lemon 
acts chemically upon it, forming compounds that are 
injurious to health. 

ORANGE JELLY 

J Box of gelatine. 
J Cup of cold water. 
i Cup of boiling water. 
\ Cup of sugar. 
1 Cup of orange- juice. 
Juice of half a lemon. 

Soften the gelatine in the cold water by soaking it 
for half an hour; then pour in the boiling water, stir- 
ring as previously directed until the gelatine is dis- 
solved; add the sugar, orange-juice, and lemon-juice, 



124 EECIPES 

in the order in which they are given, stir for a mo- 
ment, and then strain the liquid through a napkin into 
molds, and set it to cool. Use earthenware or granite- 
ware molds, not tin. The point most to be observed 
in making this jelly is getting the juice from the 
oranges. The most natural way for one to do would 
be to cat the oranges in halves, and squeeze them in 
a lemon-squeezer, but that will not do, for the orange- 
oil of the rind is extracted in such large quantities 
as to destroy the delicate flavor of the jelly. The 
proper way to do is to peel the fruit, cut it in pieces, 
put them in a jelly-bag, and squeeze out the juice 
with the hand. 

COFFEE JELLY 

J Box of gelatine. 
i Cup of cold water. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
£ Cup of strong coffee. 
i Teaspoon of vanilla. 
i Cup of sugar. 

Soak the gelatine in the cold water for half an hour ; 
then pour on the boiling water, and put in the sugar, 
coffee, and vanilla. Strain it through a napkin into a 
glass dish in which it may be served, and cool it as jellies 
are usually cooled, either in a refrigerator or in cold 
water, unless of course it is winter, when the j elly quickly 
becomes firm in any cool place, or it may be molded. 
Serve it with sweet cream and sugar, or, if it be 
molded, with whipped cream arranged around the form. 
The coffee should be strong, made with the propor- 
tion of two tablespoons of coffee to a cup of water. 

This delicious jelly is acceptable to most invalids. 



RECIPES 125 



FRENCH JELLY WITH FRESH FRUITS 

Make a wine jelly according to the recipe on page 
122. When it has lost some of its heat, but before it 
begins to thicken, pour into it a pint of carefully 
picked and cleaned raspberries, distributing them 
evenly through the liquid ; then set it away in a cool 
place, or in a refrigerator, to harden. This makes a 
nice dessert when served with sugar and cream. Other 
fruits and other jellies may be combined at the dis- 
cretion of the maker. Orange jelly with oranges and 
bananas is very good. 



RESTORATIVE JELLY 

J Box of gelatine. 
1 Cup of port wine. 

1 Tablespoon of powdered gum arabic. 

2 Tablespoons of lemon-juice. 

3 Tablespoons of sugar. 
2 Cloves. 

£ Square inch of cinnamon. 

Put the gelatine, wine, and spice into a double 
boiler, or if one is not at hand, improvise one by 
placing a bowl in a pan of water. Set the boiler on 
the fire, and when the gelatine is dissolved, put in 
the gum arabic, lemon, and sugar. Stir thoroughly; 
strain it quickly through a fine napkin, and cool it in 
a shallow dish, so that the layer of jelly shall be an 
inch thick. It is to be cut into cubes, which may be 
served two or three at a time, to be held in the mouth 
until melted. The gum arabic may be omitted. 



126 RECIPES 



CHICKEN JELLY 

Clean a small chicken, disjoint it, and cnt the 
meat into small pieces ; remove the fat, break or 
ponnd the bones, and pnt all into cold water, using 
the following proportion : A pint for every pound of 
chicken. Heat the water very slowly at first, and 
then simmer it until the meat is tender; it will re- 
quire three or four hours. Boil down to one half the 
quantity. Strain it and remove the fat; then clear 
it with an egg, and season it with salt, pepper, and 
lemon. Strain it through a fine napkin, pour into 
small cups, and cool. Parsley, celery, and bay -leaves 
give a good flavor. A suspicion of red pepper is also 
an addition. 



PUNCHEON JELLY 

J Box of phosphated gelatine. 

1 Cup of cold water. 

J Cup of hot tea. 

i Cup of sugar. 

J Cup of Jamaica rum. 

1 Tablespoon of brandy. 

1 Tablespoon of lemon-juice. 

Put the gelatine to soak in the cold water, and at 
the end of thirty minutes pour on the hot tea ; then 
add the sugar, rum, brandy, and lemon-juice : strain 
it through a fine napkin, and set it in a cool place to 
become firm. 

Phosphated gelatine is a delicate acidulated prep- 
aration, very nice for wine, lemon, or puncheon jelly. 



RECIPES 127 

but it cannot be used for creams on account of the 
acid, which curdles them. Some of the directions in- 
dicate that it may be neutralized with soda; that 
however, should not be done, since considerable 
chemical skill is required to ascertain how much acid 
there is in a given amount ; consequently there is no 
guide to the amount of soda required. 



TOAST 

The principal constituent of ordinary wheaten 
bread is starch. 

When starch is subjected to a high temperature, it is 
changed into the easily digested substance dextrine. 
In the .ordinary cooking of a loaf of bread, the starch 
in the outer layers is changed into dextrine, which 
helps to give the crust of bread that peculiar, agree- 
able flavor which we call " sweet." Slices of bread 
undergo a similar change when toast is made. 

To make toast successfully, one should endeavor to 
convert as much as possible of the starch into dex- 
trine. To do this, cut the bread one third of an inch 
thick, place the slices in a toaster, or wire broiler, and 
dry them slowly, either in a moderate oven, or by 
holding the broiler some distance from the fire. The 
object is to give the heat time to penetrate to the cen- 
ter of the slice before the outside has begun to change 
color. If a sheath be formed over the outside at once, 
the moisture will be shut in, and the middle of the 
slice will be prevented from becoming sufficiently 
headed to change its starch, for the temperature will 
not rise much above 212° Fahr. until the water is 
dried out. (Starch is changed into dextrine at 401° 
Fahr.) 

Toast that is clammy in the middle and blackened 
on the outside is less wholesome than untoasted 
bread. Great care should therefore be taken with 
the drying. When this has been accomplished, lower 

128 



RECIPES 129 

the broiler a little nearer the coals, when the toast 
will quickly turn a golden brown. An ideal piece 
of toast is crisp and golden throughout. But many 
will say that they prefer toast that is soft inside, 
and that they cannot eat hard, dry toast. The ideal 
piece of toast is not really so hard as it seems. 
It breaks arid crumbles very easily, and is quickly 
moistened by the saliva. If one would persevere with 
a slice, he would soon learn to prefer it to any other 
kind; at all events, that which is soft inside should 
not be given to the sick. It is better to make the toast 
dry, and then moisten it, if need be, by dipping the 
slices into hot water for an instant, but do not soak 
the in. 

Dry toast should be served directly from the fire, if 
possible. When this is not practicable, pile it on a 
platter, cover it with a napkin, and put it on the hearth 
or in the oven. 

Toast is given in all slight cases of illness, because 
it is so easily digested. The more thorough the con- 
version of the starch, the more easily and perfectly 
the system will manage it, for the change of starch 
into dextrine, by the action of heat, is simply doing 
outside of the body that which takes place in it in the 
ordinary course of digestion, by the action of the di- 
gestive fluids. Therefore, when this is accomplished 
by artificial means, nature is spared so much energy. 



BUTTERED WATER TOAST 

Toast four thin slices of bread. Boil in a shallow 
pan a pint of water with half a teaspoon of salt. Dip 
each slice quickly into the water, place it in a covered 
dish, and spread it with butter, piling one slice above 
another. 



130 RECIPES 

Do not let the bread soak in the water. Endeavor 
to keep a suggestion of crispness in it, for sloppy, 
sodden toast is not nice. Serve it very hot, with apple 
sauce, sweet baked apples, or tart jelly. Water toast 
is really delicious if care is taken to have it hot. It 
will be eaten with relish much longer than that made 
with milk. 

MILK TOAST 

Put a cup of rich milk into a saucepan, and place it 
on the stove. While it is heating, toast three slices of 
bread a delicate brown. Put them one at a time into 
a covered dish, and when the milk is boiling hot season 
it with a saltspoon of salt and pour it over the bread. 
A little butter may be spread upon each slice before 
the milk is poured over, but it is a more delicate dish 
without it. 

CREAM TOAST 

1 Pint of milk. 

1 Tablespoon of flour. 

1 Tablespoon of butter. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

4 Large or 6 small slices of bread. 

Make a white sauce with the milk, flour, and butter 
according to the following directions. Pour the milk 
into a saucepan, and set it on the fire to heat. Put 
the butter and flour together in another saucepan, 
place it on the fire, and stir gently until the butter 
melts; let them bubble together two or three min- 
utes. The high temperature which the butter quickly 
attains will partially cook the flour in a short time. 
Then pour in a little of the milk, and stir until the 



RECIPES 131 

two are mixed; add a little more milk, and stir again 
until it bubbles; if at this point the mixture does not 
seem smooth, lift it from the fire, and beat it until it is 
waxy and perfectly free from lumps. Then add more 
milk, stir again, and so continue until all the milk is 
in. Let it simmer slowly until the toast is read}', 
which should be made according to the rule for dry 
toast. Then soak the slices in boiling salted milk 
(four if from a large, and six if from a small loaf of 
bread), arrange them in a covered dish, and pour the 
cream, salted, between and over them. Irregular 
pieces and odds and cuds of bread may be used in- 
stead of whole slices, and are very nice toasted in a tin 
pan in the oven. 

One precaution is necessary in making this dish; 
that is, to soak the bread thoroughly in the boiling 
milk, for the sauce or cream is too thick to soften it. 
On account of the high temperature to which the 
butter rises, the starch is more perfectly cooked in it 
than if the flour were mixed with cold water and 
poured into the boiling milk, as is sometimes done. 



FRENCH OR EGG TOAST 

1 Vgg. 

1 Cup of milk or cream. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
3 Slices of bread. 

Break the egg on a plate, and beat it with a fork for 
a minute, or until the viscousness is destroyed. Then 
mix in the milk and salt. In this mixture soak the 
slices of bread until they are soft, lay them in a but- 
tered omelet-pan, and fry them slowly until a golden 
brown. Then place a bit of butter on the upper side 



132 EECIPES 



of each slice, turn and brown that side. Spread a 
little butter, powdered cinnamon, and sugar on each 
slice and arrange them one above another in a covered 
dish. Serve very hot. 



CROUTONS 

Crouton is a French word which in English means 
crust. The term was first applied to the paste of saw- 
dust, flour, and water in which the peasants of south- 
ern France used long ago to inclose their pieces of 
meat before roasting. After the meat was done the 
crust was broken open and thrown away. The word 
with us is applied to little cubes of buttered bread 
which have been browned in the oven. They are used 
in soups and stews, sprinkled in just before serving. 

To Make Croutons. Butter a slice of evenly cut 
bread. Divide it into cubes that will be one third of 
an inch on a side. This will necessitate cutting the 
slice of bread exactly a third of an inch thick. Place 
these little cubes on a tin plate, or shallow dish, and 
put the dish on the grate in a moderate oven for 
fifteen minutes. When done they should be light 
golden brown throughout, crisp and brittle. Some- 
times cubes of bread are fried in fat to resemble 
croutons, but unless done by a skilful hand they are 
usually soaked with fat. Even at the best they lack 
the delicate flavor of those which are buttered, and 
browned in an oven. 



SIPPETS 

Sippets are evenly cut oblongs of bread delicately 
toasted. They may be served as dry toast, or with 



RECIPES 133 

broiled birds or broiled oysters. They are also nice 
for a lunch with a cup of tea or cocoa. 

To Make Sippets. Cut thin slices of bread, and from 
them make oblongs one inch wide by four inches 
long. Toast carefully so that they will not break, 
and pile on a small bread-plate if they are to be 
served dry. 

VERMICELLI TOAST 

Prepare a cream toast according to the rule on page 
130, except arrange the slices on a platter and pour the 
sauce evenly over them. Press through a coarse wire 
strainer enough hard-boiled yolk of egg to lightly 
cover it. It will fall in irregular, broken, crinkled 
threads, somewhat resembling vermicelli, hence the 
name. 



10 



SOUPS 

OYSTER SOUP 

1 Cup of fresh oysters. 
1 Cup of milk. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

2 Tablespoons of rolled cracker-crumbs. 
A sprinkle of pepper. 

J Teaspoon of butter. 

Put the milk with the cracker-crumbs into a sauce- 
pan on the stove; while it is heating pick over the 
oysters on a plate, and remove any bits of shell that 
may be among them. Have a hot omelet-pan ready 
to receive them, and when the milk reaches the boil- 
ing-point, put the oysters into the omelet-pan. Stir 
and turn them until they become plump, or while 
about sixty can be slowly counted; then drop the 
oysters into the boiling milk, take it immediately 
from the fire, add the salt, pepper, and butter, and 
serve at once. The point which requires the most at- 
tention is the cooking of the oysters in the omelet- 
pan. Do not let them cook quite enough, as the milk 
has sufficient heat to finish them. If too long ex- 
posed to the heat, the albuminous juice becomes over- 
cooked, and the oysters consequently tough and 
leathery. For thickening oyster soup, two tablespoons 
of white sauce may be substituted for the cracker- 
crumbs. 

134 



RECIPES 135 



CHICKEN SOUP 



Thoroughly clean a good fowl. Separate it at the 
joints and cut it into small pieces. Put the meat into 
a saucepan with three pints of water, and stew it for 
two and one half or three hours, or until it becomes 
very tender. Then take out the meat, let the liquor 
continue to boil, and to it add one tablespoon of rice, 
one tablespoon of finely cut onion which has been 
fried with a bit of butter until soft, but not brown, 
and three peppercorns. Cut the nicer portions of the 
meat into small pieces, after removing all the skin, 
gristle, and bone. Put these pieces, with one tea- 
spoon of salt, into the soup, and let all simmer until 
the rice is very soft. Then take out the peppercorns. 
Avery little white pepper and a little celery-salt or 
curry-powder may be added. Serve hot with crou- 
tons. If the water boils away during the cooking, 
which it will do unless the simmering is very gentle, 
restore the quantity. 



MOCK-BISQUE SOUP 

1 Pint of tomatoes, measured after they 

have been stewed and strained. 
1 Pint of white sauce. 
1 Teaspoon of salt. 
J Saltspoon of pepper. 
\ Saltspoon of soda. 

Although mock-bisque soup is better made with 
fresh tomatoes, the canned fruit may be used, with 
the precaution that it be allowed to stew only just 
long enough to soften it through, for long boiling 



136 RECIPES 

develops in it a very strong acid. When the toma- 
toes are soft, strain them through a soup-strainer, or 
other coarse wire strainer, until there is nothing left 
but the seeds. Measure a pint of the liquid, add the 
soda, salt, and pepper, and set it on the stove to heat 
slowly. Meanwhile make a white sauce with one ta- 
blespoon of butter, one of flour, and a pint of milk, 
according to the rule on page 130. Add this sauce to 
the tomato, strain all into a double boiler, return to 
the fire, and serve as soon as it becomes steaming hot. 

If fresh tomatoes can be obtained, wash and wipe 
them, cut out the green part near the stem, divide 
them into small pieces without taking off the skins, 
and Stew without water until the fruit is just soft 
enough to mash. If the tomatoes are fully ripe and 
carefully cooked, they will not require the soda, but 
when soda is necessary, fresh tomatoes need only half 
the amount used for canned fruit. 

This is an appetizing and delicate soup, and may 
be freely used by most invalids. 



POTATO SOUP 

3 Medium-sized potatoes. 

1 Teaspoon of chopped onion. 

2 Saltspoons of celery-salt, or 3 stalks 
1 Teaspoon of salt. [of celery. 
A little white pepper. 

A speck of cayenne. 

1 Teaspoon of flour. 

2 Teaspoons of butter. 
1 Pint of milk. 

Pare and boil the potatoes. Cook the onion and cel- 
ery in the milk, with which make a white ?>auce with 



RECIPES 137 

the flour and butter. When the potatoes are done, 
drain off the water and dry them over the fire by mov- 
ing the pan back and forth on the stove to keep them 
from sticking. Then, without removing the pan from 
the fire, mash them thoroughly with a potato-masher, 
and put in the sauce, pepper, cayenne, and salt; strain 
all through a soup-strainer, and if the consistency be 
not perfectly smooth and even, strain it again. Put 
it into a double boiler, set back on the stove, and 
when hot it is ready to serve. If the soup seems very 
thick, add a little more milk, for some potatoes are 
drier than others, and will consequently absorb more 
moisture. It should be like a thin puree. 

This soup may be varied by using a quart instead 
of a pint of milk, and the whites of two eggs well 
beaten, the latter to be added just two minutes before 
it is removed from the fire, which will be sufficient 
time for the egg to cook. Care should be taken not 
to allow the egg to harden, or the soup will have a 
curdled appearance. 



CREAM-OF-CELERY SOUP 

1 Head of celery. 

1 Pint of water. 

1 Pint of milk. 

1 Tablespoon of butter. 

1 Tablespoon of flour. 

£ Teaspoon of salt. 

£ Saltspoon of white pepper. 

1 Teaspoon of minced onion. 

Wash and scrape the celery, cut it into half-inch 
pieces, put it into the pint of boiling water, and cook 
until it is very soft. When done mash it in the water 
in which it was boiled, and add the salt and pepper. 



138 RECIPES 

Cook the onion in the milk, and with it make a white 
sauce with the butter and flour; add this to the celery, 
and strain it through a soup-strainer, pressing and 
mashing with the back of a spoon until all but a few 
tough fibers of the celery are squeezed through. Re- 
turn the soup, in a double boiler, to the fire, and heat 
it until it is steaming, when it is ready to serve. 

By substituting chicken broth for water, and using 
celery-salt instead of fresh celery when it is not in sea- 
son, a very acceptable variation of this soup may be 
made. 

CREAM-OF-RICE SOUP 

J Cup of rice. 

1 Pint of chicken broth or stock. 

1 Pint of sweet cream. 

1 Teaspoon of chopped onion. 

1 Stalk of celery. 

3 Saltspoons of salt. 

A little white pepper. 

i Saltspoon of curry-powder. 

Pick over and wash the rice, and put it into the 
chicken broth in a saucepan to cook. Simmer it slowly 
until the rice is very soft. It will require two hours' 
cooking to accomplish this. Half an hour before the 
rice is done put the cream into a saucepan with the 
onion, celery, pepper, and curry, and let them simmer 
slowly for twenty minutes; then pour the mixture 
into the rice; press all through a soup-strainer; add 
the salt, and set it back on the stove to heat to the 
boiling-point It should be a rather thin soup, not a 
puree. Should the broth boil away while the rice is 
cooking, or should the soup be too thick, add more 
broth, or some water. 



EECIPES 139 



QUEEN VICTORIA'S FAVORITE SOUP 

1 Cup of chopped chicken meat. 

1 Pint of strong chicken broth. 

1 Pint of sweet cream. 

£ Cup of cracker- or bread-crumbs. 

3 Yolks of eggs. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

i Saltspoon of pepper. 

The chicken may be obtained from what remains of 
a roast, in which case the bones, skin, tendons, and all 
the scraps left should be boiled for the broth. It is 
better, however, to use a fowl which has been cooked 
on purpose, as the broth from such a one is of finer 
flavor. Soak the cracker-crumbs in a little of the 
cream. Break three eggs, separate the whites from 
the yolks, and carefully drop the yolks into hot water; 
boil them until they are hard. Chop the chicken in a 
chopping-tray until it is as fine as meal, previously 
having removed everything except the clear meat; 
mix the soaked cracker with it ; press the hard egg- 
yolks through a coarse wire strainer and put them in, 
and also the salt, pepper, and broth. Then strain the 
whole through a colander, adding the cream a little 
at a time, and pressing through all of the meat. Boil 
it for five minutes in a saucepan, or cook it in a 
double boiler for half an hour. This makes a deli- 
cious soup. 

CHICKEN-TAPIOCA SOUP 

2 Tablespoons of tapioca. 

£ Cup of cold water. 

1 Pint of strong chicken broth or white stock. 



140 RECIPES 

1 Pint of milk. 

1 Stalk of celery, or some celery-salt. 

1 Tablespoon of chopped onion. 

J Square inch of mace. 

1 Scant teaspoon of salt. 

J Saltspoon of white pepper. 

\ Teaspoon of butter. 

The broth for this dish may be made by boiling the 
bones of a roast with the left-over pieces of meat, and 
then reducing the liquor until it is strong enough. 
Put the tapioca to soak in the cold water, overnight 
if it be .the common, coarse kind, but if pearl or gran- 
ulated tapioca is used, twenty minutes will do. Then 
add the chicken stock, and simmer it until the tapioca 
is completely softened. It will require two or three 
hours. About half an hour before the tapioca will be 
done, put the milk, celery, onion, and mace into a 
saucepan to cook, and as soon as the tapioca becomes 
soft pour it in ; remove from the fire, and strain the 
whole through a wire strainer, forcing through with 
a spoon all the grains of tapioca. Then add the salt, 
pepper, and butter ; set it back on the stove, and heat 
it just to the boiling-point, when it is ready to serve. 



BEEF-TAPIOCA SOUP 

\ Cup of granulated tapioca. 
1J Cups of water. 
1 Pint of strong beef broth. 
£ Teaspoon of salt. 
£ Teaspoon of mixed sweet herbs. 
1 Teaspoon of minced onion. 
A little black pepper. 



RECIPES 141 

Soak the tapioca for twenty minutes in a half cup 
of cold water, then set it to cook in a double boiler 
with the rest of the water (one cupful). When the 
grains become soft and begin to look transparent, put 
in all the other ingredients and cook until the tapioca 
is completely dissolved. This will require two or 
three hours. Strain it, and return it to the fire to 
boil for five minutes, when it is ready to serve. This 
soup may be made with the ordinary stock from a 
stock-kettle. A little chicken broth is an improving 
addition, and really makes a most savory soup. 



CHICKEN PANADA 

A panada is a dish the foundation of which is bread. 
For chicken panada there will be needed : 

1 Cup of chicken meat. 

£ Cup of bread soaked in milk. 

1 Pint of chicken liquor or broth. 

J Teaspoon of salt. 

i Saltspoon of pepper. 

The chicken may be obtained from a cold roast, 
the bones, gristle, and tendons of which should be 
boiled for the broth, or a fowl may be used on pur- 
pose for it. 

Put the bread-crumbs to soak in enough milk to 
cover them. Cut the chicken into small pieces, leaving 
out everything which is not clear meat, and chop it 
in a chopping-tray until it is very fine. Press the 
bread-crumbs through a coarse wire strainer into it, 
pour in the broth (from which the fat has been re- 
moved by skimming with a spoon), and add the pepper 
and salt. Boil for one minute. The panada should 



142 RECIPES 

be about the consistency of thick gruel. It may be 
varied by seasoning it with either celery-salt or curry- 
powder. Two tablespoons of sweet cream is also a 
desirable addition. 



CONSOMME 

3 Quarts of cold water. 
\ of a good fowl. 

2 Pounds of lean beef, or 2^ pounds of 

beef and bone. 
J Pound of lean ham. 
1 Tablespoon of chopped carrot. 
1 Tablespoon of chopped turnip. 
1 Teaspoon of minced onion. 
1 Tablespoon of celery. 

3 Cloves. 

3 Peppercorns. 

1 Tablespoon of mixed sweet herbs. 

Wipe but do not wash the beef, unless, of course, it 
is very dirty. Cut it into small slices, and fry it in a 
hot frying-pan to brown it and to develop the flavor 
of the meat. Then divide the slices into small pieces, 
so as to expose as large a surface as possible to the 
action of the water. Put it, with the chicken (after it 
has been cleaned and cut into small pieces), into a 
porcelain-lined or granite- ware soup- digester, with the 
piece of ham and three quarts of cold water. Let it 
slowly reach the boiling-point, and simmer it gently 
for six hours. Boiling briskly dissipates the flavors 
by separating certain subtle substances which are per- 
ceptible to the sense of smell, and if they are in the air 
they cannot also be in the broth. 

When it has been cooking for three hours, fry the 



RECIPES 143 

carrot, turnip, and onion together in a little butter 
until they are brown, and put them with the cloves, 
sweet herbs, peppercorns, and celery into the soup. If 
these are cooked with the meat from the beginning, 
the flavor is not so good. 

At the end of the six hours, when the meat is in 
rags, strain the liquid into a china bowl, and set it 
away to cool until all the fat rises and forms in a 
cake on the top. It is a good plan to cool it over- 
night when there is plenty of time. Every particle 
of fat must be removed, and it is not possible to do 
this unless the soup is cooled. To clear consomme 
return it to the fire, and as soon as it becomes liquid 
break into it two eggs, and stir slowly until the soup 
begins to steam and the albumen of the eggs is coagu- 
lated. The coagulum will entangle all the insoluble 
matter ; then strain the liquid through a napkin, salt 
it, and heat it just to the boiling-point, when it is 
ready to serve. 

It should be perfectly clear, and of a golden-brown 
color like sherry wine. If the color is not dark enough, 
a little caramel (burnt sugar) may be added. 

The above quantity of meats and flavoring should 
give a quart of consomme. 



BOUILLON 

Make a plain beef broth according to the rule on 
page 78. To a quart of this add a pinch each of 
thyme, sage, sweet marjoram, and mint (or enough to 
make in all what will fill a teaspoon), and a teaspoon 
each of chopped onion and carrot. Boil all together 
until the broth is reduced to one pint. Strain, season 
with salt and pepper, and serve very hot in covered 
cups. 



144 RECIPES 



APPLE SOUP 

2 Cups of apple. 

2 Cups of water. 

2 Teaspoons of corn-starch. 

1J Tablespoons of sugar. 

1 Saltspoon of cinnamon. 

A bit of salt. 

Stew the apple in the water until it is very soft. 
Then mix together into a smooth paste the corn- 
starch, sugar, salt, and cinnamon with a little cold 
water. IPour this into the apple, and boil for five 
minutes. Strain it into a soup-tureen, and keep hot 
until ready to serve. This is very good eaten with 
hot buttered sippets. 



OYSTERS 

Oysters are a greatly prized food, though why it is 
difficult to say, since they contain much water and are 
not highly nutritious. But they possess a delicate 
insinuating flavor that is generally acceptable to most 
palates, and probably are really valuable for the salts 
which they contain. 

The composition of oysters (Payen's analysis) is as 
follows : 

Nitrogenous matter 14.010% 

Fat 1.515% 

Saline substances 2.695% 

Water 80.385% 

Non-nitrogenous matter and waste 1.395% 

Total 100.000 



According to Professor Mott's Chart of the Compo- 
sition, Digestibility, and Nutritive Value of Foods, 
from actual experiment the time required for the 
digestion of oysters is as follows : 

Hours. Minutes. 

Saw oysters 2 55 

Roasted oysters 3 15 

Stewed oysters 3 30 



This shows that they require a longer time than do 
most kinds of fish, venison, beefsteak, tripe, soased 

145 



146 RECIPES 

pig's feet, eggs, and roast beef, all of which are di- 
gested in varying times less than those mentioned. 

Oysters are found in greatest perfection in the 
Eastern States, and in the cooler waters of the west- 
ern Atlantic. The choicest varieties in the world 
come from the shores of Long Island, and from the 
Providence River. Chesapeake Bay is noted for the 
abundance of its oysters. 

Oysters are in season from September to May ; dur- 
ing the rest of the year they are insipid and unfit for 
food, although they are sometimes used. 

Convalescents often begin with fresh, sound oys- 
ters, before they venture to try other kinds of solid 
animal food. 

Oysters may be used in a variety of ways, but 
served raw and broiled slightly in the shells are per- 
haps the two most desirable ways with which to 
begin. Afterward stews and soups are recommended 
on account of their liquid form and warmth, warm 
foods being always so much more desirable than cold. 

There are some points to be carefully observed in 
preparing oysters for the sick. (1) Make every effort 
to have the oysters alive when used. If this is im- 
possible, buy salt-water oysters as fresh as they can 
be obtained of a reliable dealer. Many serious cases 
of illness, and even death, have been caused by eating 
oysters so long dead that poisonous substances had 
formed in them. (2) Remember that oysters contain 
an albuminous juice which increases in hardness with 
an increase of temperature, just as the albumen of an 
egg does. When oysters are cooked with reference 
to this juice alone, they are also cooked in the best 
possible manner with reference to their other ingre- 
dients ; therefore subject them to a low temperature, 
and for a short time, bearing in mind that 160° Fahr. 
is the cooking temperature of albumen. 



RECIPES 147 



RAW OYSTERS 

Wash and scrub the shells well under a stream of 
water, with a vegetable brush. With a hammer break 
the thin edges of the shell so that a knife may be in- 
serted to sever the muscle which holds the two parts 
of the shell together; when this is cut remove the up- 
per half, and wipe the edges free from any grains of 
sand. Then sever the muscle which joins the oyster 
to the other half, so that it may be easily lifted out, 
without the necessity of cutting. Arrange them on 
an oyster-plate, and serve with salt, black pepper, and 
lemon -juice. A half or a quarter of a lemon may be 
placed in the center of the plate, which usually has 
a groove on purpose for it. 



OYSTERS ROASTED IN THE SHELL 

Wash the shells very carefully with a brush. Put 
them in a wire broiler over glowing coals, the round 
side of the shell down so as to hold the juice. Cook 
them quickly, turning once or twice until the shells 
open. They may also be done in a hot oven. When 
done, remove the upper half of the shell ; season them 
quickly with salt, pepper, and a tiny bit of butter, 
and vinegar, if liked, and serve them while they are 
very hot. The true oyster flavor is delightfully de- 
veloped by preparing in this way. They may also be 
served with melted butter, seasoned with salt, pepper, 
and lemon-juice. 

OYSTER SOUP 

See recipe under Soups, on page 134. 



148 EECIPES 



OYSTER STEW 



1 Cup of oysters. 

1 Cup of rich milk. 

2 Saltspoons of salt. 
A little white pepper. 
i Teaspoon of butter. 

Set the milk in a saucepan on the fire to heat. Pre- 
pare the oysters by pouring over them a cup of cold 
water to wash them, from which lift them out with a 
fork, and search for bits of shell which sometimes ad- 
here when they are opened. Then lay them on a 
napkin or a piece of clean cloth, to drain off as much 
as possible of the water. Unless oysters are just taken 
from the shells, the liquor is not of much value. Just 
as the milk reaches the boiling-point, put the oysters 
into an omelet-pan, which has been previously set on 
the stove to heat, and cook them for a minute, or 
until they become plump, turning them every ten 
seconds with a fork. The moment the edges or frills 
begin to curl, drop them into the milk and remove it 
immediately from the fire. Now add the seasoning 
and butter, and the stew is ready to serve — which 
should be done as soon as possible. 

Oyster stew may also be made by preparing the 
oysters as above and then dropping them into boiling- 
hot milk, which should remain for one or two minutes 
on the fire before removal. 



CREAMED OYSTERS 

Clean a pint of oysters according to the directions 
in the previous rule. After drying them on a napkin, 



RECIPES 149 

spread them on a plate and season them with salt, 
pepper, and a suspicion of cayenne. 

Make a rich cream sauce with one pint of cream, 
one tablespoon of butter, and two tablespoons of flour. 

When the sauce is cooked, roll into it the seasoned 
oysters, put them in individual scallop- dishes, or a dish 
such as might be used for scalloped oysters, or any 
shallow baking-dish that is good enough to serve; 
then bake them in a hot oven, on the grate, for ten 
minutes if in small dishes, or for fifteen if in a single 
large one. This gives time enough for the oysters to 
become cooked but not hardened. The mixing of the 
oysters and sauce should be done quickly, so that the 
sauce may not become cold before they are put into 
the oven ; for if there is much delay, it will take longer 
to cook them than the time given. 

This is a good way to cook oysters for the sick, for 
the sauce made according to the rule for such sauces 
(page 130) is easily digested, nutritious, and of good 
flavor. 

BROILED OYSTERS 

Select large oysters. Drain them on a cloth or 
napkin, turning them from one side to the other, to 
make them as dry as possible. Meanwhile soften 
some butter, and season some cracker-crumbs with salt 
and pepper. Then, holding each oyster on a fork, dip it 
into the crumbs, then into the melted butter, and again 
into the crumbs. Arrange them in an oyster-broiler 
(which differs from ordinary broilers by having the 
wires closer together), and broil over a hot fire for 
about two minuteSj turning the broiler every few sec- 
onds. They should not be shriveled, but plump, soft, 
tender, and juicy. The salt and pepper in the crumbs 
will sufficiently season them. 



150 EECIPES 



FANCY ROAST OR PAN-BROILED OYSTERS 

Eight oysters will be enough for one person. 
Drain the oysters on a cloth or napkin, making them 
as free from moisture as possible. Heat an omelet- 
pan, with a small piece of butter in it, very hot ; then 
drop the oysters one by one into the pan, turning each 
before the next is put in. One should work quickly, 
otherwise the first will be overdone before the last is 
put in. When the pan is full, shake it a moment, lift it 
from the fire, and turn the oysters quickly into a square 
covered dish, with toast-points in the corners. Sea- 
son them with salt, pepper, and a bit of butter, and 
serve them as quickly as convenient. 

Each oyster should be cooked so quickly that its 
juices are shut into itself and do not ooze out into 
the pan. There is usually a very little juice with the 
butter, but if it is considerable, one may know that 
the oysters have not been cooked in a sufficiently high 
temperature. Oysters are very nice done in this way, 
but it takes a skilful worker to do them without 
letting the juice ooze out, or, on the other hand, over- 
cooking them. The toast-points are made by cutting 
small squares of bread diagonally across. 



OYSTER BROTH 

Chop a dozen oysters in a chopping-tray until they 
are quite fine. Turn them into a small saucepan with 
a cup of cold water, and let them slowly approach the 
boiling-point, and then simmer them for five minutes, 
the object being to get as much as possible of the flavor 
of the oysters into the water. Then strain out the 
oysters, season the liquor with a bit of salt, and serve. 



RECIPES 151 

A broth with milk may be made by putting in less 
water, and adding milk three or four minutes before 
the broth is taken from the fire. 



OYSTERS COOKED IN A CHAFING-DISH 

Chafing-dishes are generally made of silver, and 
are much used just at present for cooking oysters 
at the table. A chafing-dish consists of a covered 
dish resting in a frame, and heated from below with 
an alcohol lamp. It is brought to the table with the 
lamp lighted and the raw oysters ready to be cooked. 
Some member of the family takes it in charge, and 
the result is a much more satisfactory dish than could 
be otherwise obtained, for it requires intelligence and 
a cultivated taste to cook and season these delicious 
bivalves. 

Uses of the Chafing-dish. It may be used for broth, 
stew, soup, and fancy roast, the treatment being ex- 
actly the same as with a saucepan or an omelet-pan 
on a stove. 



Yolk 



EGGS 

Eggs, next to milk, are the most valuable form of 
food for those who are very ill. They contain in ex- 
cellent proportion most of the elements necessary to 
nourish the body; but being a concentrated form 
of food, it is well to associate with them milk or 
some 'other liquid, and such starchy foods as bread, 
potatoes, etc. 

According to Laws and Gilbert the composition of 
egg is as follows: 

Shell Carbonate of lime 10.00%" 

Nitrogenous matter 16.00% 

Fatty matter 30.70% 

Saline matter 1.30% 

Water 52.00% 

Total 100.00% 

j Nitrogenous matter 20.40%" 

White <^ Saline matter 1.60% 

[ Water 78.00% 

Total 100.00% 

A large proportion of both yolk and white is albu- 
men. 1 It has been found by experiment (page 25) 
that when white of egg is subjected to a temperature 

{Water 74.00% 
Nitrogenous matter 14.00% 
Fat 10.500/g 
Inorganic matter 1.50% 

PAVT. 

152 



RECIPES 153 

of 134°-140° Fahr. little white threads appear in it; 
that if the temperature be increased to 160° Fahr., 
the whole mass becomes a white, but tender, easily 
divided substance; that if the heat be raised to 200° 
Fahr. it loses its tender, jelly-like consistency, and 
becomes firm and tenacious; and that with continued 
rise of temperature the toughness increases until at 
from 300°-350° Fahr. it becomes so hard that it is 
used as a cement for marble. 

From these statements it will at once be inferred 
that the proper cooking temperature of eggs is not 
that of boiling water, but 52° lower. Eggs cooked 
the customary three minutes in boiling water will be 
overdone in the part nearest the shell, and not cooked 
at all in the center of the yolk, as three minutes is 
not long enough for the heat to penetrate to that 
point. The yolk, though not injurious in this condi- 
tion, is not as palatable as when it is cooked. The 
condition of the white, however, is of more impor- 
tance, for it is tough and therefore not readily 
digested. 

It is generally agreed that although albumen will 
coagulate at a temperature somewhat lower than 160° 
Fahr., the degree of firmness obtained by exposing it 
to this temperature is the most desirable for food. 
Therefore we speak of 160° Fahr. as its cooking tem- 
perature. An egg cooked ideally would be subjected 
to that temperature for a sufficient time to allow the 
heat to penetrate and act upon all portions of it. The 
time required is half an hour. Cooked according to 
this method, the white would be opaque and firm, but 
tender and delicate, the yolk not liquid and lukewarm, 
but thick and almost firm. The flavor of both is de- 
licious. 

A knowledge of the proper temperature necessary 
to bring about this change is absolutely essential to 



154 RECIPES 

any one who would cook eggs, and dishes which con- 
tain them, such as creams, puddings, etc., as they 
should be cooked. A great deal of the philosophy of 
cooking depends upon this knowledge, for nearly all 
kinds of meat, fish, oysters, milk, and other albuminous 
foods contain as one of their most valuable nutrients 
the substance known as albumen. When they are 
cooked with reference to this alone, we find that they 
are also done in the best-known way with reference 
to their other ingredients. 

Practically with our present kitchen appliances it 
is exceedingly difficult to maintain for half an hour 
a steady temperature of 160°, but excellent results 
may be obtained by the following method. 



SOFT-COOKED EGGS 

Pour enough boiling water into a saucepan to more 
than cover whatever number of eggs are to be cooked ; 
then put in the eggs, and let them stand for ten min- 
utes on the hearth or any place where the water will 
not lose its warmth too quickly. Remember that it 
is the heat in the water which is to do the cooking. 
The saucepan should remain uncovered. Practically 
this is an excellent way to do, for the amount of heat 
in the water will not fall below 160° Fahr. in the ten 
minutes, and that time is sufficient for it to penetrate 
to the center of the egg. Moreover, if the egg be for- 
gotten, and remains in the water for a longer time, it 
will not become hard unless the temperature of the 
water be raised. 

Theoretically an egg should be cooked at 160° Fahr., 
but practically this would involve a considerable 
waste of time and necessitate the use of a thermom- 
eter. Almost the same result is obtained in an easy 



EECIPES 155 

and convenient way by the above method, although 
it is not an exact one. The proportion of boiling 
water for each egg which will insure cooking in the 
time given is one pint, but somewhat less will do if 
many are to be cooked; for instance, eight eggs will 
do in six pints, as comparatively less heat is lost in 
warming the pan. 



POACHED OR DROPPED EGGS 

From a thin, even slice of home-made bread cut out 
a round piece with a biscuit-cutter; toast it a delicate 
brown. 

Pour some boiling water into a small saucepan and 
salt it, using a saltspoon of salt to a cup of water; 
place it on the stove to boil. Break a fresh egg into 
a cup, and when the water is boiling slip it gently 
into the pan. At first the egg will cool the water 
below the boiling-point, but should the water again 
begin to boil, withdraw the pan to a cooler part of 
the stove. When the white is firm, or at the end of 
about two minutes, lift out the egg by means of two 
spoons or a skimmer (being careful not to break the 
yolk), and place it on the round of toast. The egg 
should not be trimmed. Season it with a speck of 
salt, a little pepper, and a bit of butter placed on the 
middle of the yolk. This is a dainty and easy way of 
preparing eggs for the sick, and one is always sure 
of the condition of the eggs, which is not the case 
when they are cooked in the shell. 

A layer of minced ham or of minced chicken laid 
on the toast makes a palatable variation. 

Egg-poachers, or little tin cups with perforated 
bottoms set in a frame, may be bought for poaching 
eggs, but in those that the author has seen the raw 



156 RECIPES 

albumen runs into the little holes and makes it dif- 
ficult to remove the egg after it is done without 
breaking it. Muffin-rings may also be used. 



SCRAMBLED EGGS. No. 1 

Break two eggs into a plate, and sprinkle on a little 
pepper and a saltspoon of salt; beat them with a fork 
for one minute, add four tablespoons of milk or, better, 
thin sweet cream; beat again and pour the mixture 
into a buttered pan; stir it gently, letting it cook 
slowly for about two minutes, or until the albumen 
of the egg is coagulated. It should be soft and ten- 
der, not hardened. Serve it on toast, or in a small, 
square covered dish. 



SCRAMBLED EGGS. No. 2 

Beat two eggs, a saltspoon of salt, and a sprinkle 
of white pepper in a bowl with a Dover egg-beater 
until quite light ; add four tablespoons of sweet cream 
or of milk, and turn the mixture into a double boiler 
to cook, stirring it constantly until the albumen is just 
coagulated. A delicate and easily digested dish is the 
result. It is a safer way to use the double boiler 
rather than an omelet-pan. If no double boiler is at 
hand, one may be improvised with a bowl or dish set 
into a kettle of hot water. 



OMELETS 

Omelets may be made in a great variety of ways, 
the kind depending not upon a difference in mixing 



RECIPES 157 

the eggs, but upon the ingredients which are added. 
Spanish omelet is ordinary omelet with onion. Truf- 
fles, mushrooms, chopped oysters, rum, and tomato 
make other varieties. Flour should never be used in 
them, as it cannot be properly cooked in the short 
time that should be given to the eggs. If it should 
happen that an omelet is to be made, and there is no 
milk at hand, water may be substituted, but an ome- 
let should never be made without one or the other. 



CREAMY OMELET 

Beat four eggs slightly with a fork until you can 
take up a spoonful ; add two saltspoons of salt, half 
a saltspoon of pepper, four tablespoons of milk or 
cream, and mix well. Butter an omelet-pan, and be- 
fore the butter browns turn in the mixture. Then 
with the point of a fork pick or lift up the cooked 
egg from the center, and let the uncooked egg run 
under. This leaves the butter on the pan, and is bet- 
ter than stirring. Continue the lifting until the 
whole is of a soft creamy consistency, then place it 
over a hotter part of the fire and brown slightly, fold 
and turn out as usual. (Adapted from Mrs. D. A. 
Lincoln's "Boston Cook Book.") 

For an invalid's use take half the quantities men- 
tioned above — that is, use two eggs, two tablespoons 
of milk or cream, a saltspoon of salt, and a bit of pep- 
per; and instead of having the omelet-pan hot, 
have it just warm enough to melt the butter; other- 
wise the first layer of egg which is cooked may be 
overdone and hardened. 



158 RECIPES 



FOAMY OMELET 



Separate the yolks from the whites of two eggs, and 
put them into bowls. To the yolks add a saltspoon 
of salt and one fourth of a saltspoon of pepper. Beat 
with a Dover egg-beater until light. Then add two 
tablespoons of milk. Beat the whites until stiff, but 
not as stiff as possible, and fold, not beat them into 
the yolks, so that the whole shall be very light and 
puffy. Pour the mixture into a buttered omelet- 
pan, and cook slowly until the under side begins to 
change color and become brown, or for about two 
minutes. Then put the pan on the grate in the oven 
for about one minute, to cook the upper surface. One 
must endeavor to avoid both over and under cooking. 
If the omelet is not done enough, the raw egg will 
ooze out after it is folded ; on the other hand, if it is 
cooked too much, it will be dry and tough. When it 
seems to be coagulated on the upper surface, run a 
case-knife under it to separate it from the pan, and 
fold one half over the other. Take the platter which 
is to receive it in the right hand, lay it against 
the edge of the pan, and tip the omelet out. Serve 
immediately. 

An omelet is a dainty and delicate way of serving 
eggs, and may be well made by any one who will bear 
in mind that the cooking temperature of albumen is 
160° Fahr., and that if exposed to a very much higher 
degree of heat for many minutes, it will be spoiled, — 
rendered both unpalatable and indigestible. 



OMELET WITH HAM. No. 1 

Broil a thin, small slice of ham until thoroughly 



RECIPES 159 



well done. Lay it between the folds of an omelet. 
Either creamy or foamy omelets may be used. 



OMELET WITH HAM. No. 2 

Mince a piece of cooked ham until it is fine. Stir it 
into an omelet in the proportion of one teaspoon to 
an egg, or it may be sprinkled over the surface just 
before folding. When seasoned with a little mustard, 
it makes a very piquant addition. Either creamy or 
foamy omelets may be used. 



OMELET WITH JELLY 

Spread a tablespoon of grape or currant jelly over 
the middle of the upper surface of a two-egg omelet 
just before folding it. 



OMELET WITH CHICKEN 

Chop fine the cooked white meat of a piece of 
chicken. Season it with salt and pepper, and sprinkle 
it over an omelet, or stir it into the egg before cook- 
ing, in the proportion of one teaspoon to an egg, as 
is done with ham. 



OMELET WITH TOMATO 

Prepare thin slices of very ripe tomatoes, by re- 
moving the skin and seasoning slightly with salt. 



160 EECIPES 

Lay them on that part of the omelet which is to be 
the lower half, and fold ; or the tomato may be 
tucked into the omelet after folding. 

OMELET WITH PARSLEY 

Wash some parsley. Break off the stems and roll 
the rest into a little ball ; then, holding it firmly in the 
left hand, cut slices from it, or chop it on a board. 
Stir it into the omelet mixture before it is cooked, in 
the proportion of one teaspoon for each egg, 

SPANISH OMELET 

To an omelet mixture add two drops of onion- juice 
for each egg, or half a teaspoon of very finely minced 
onion. 

ORANGE OMELET 

"The thinly grated rind of one orange and three 
tablespoons of the juice, three eggs, and three tea- 
spoons of powdered sugar. Beat the yolks, add the 
sugar, rind, and juice, fold in the beaten whites, and 
cook. Fold, turn out, sprinkle thickly with powdered 
sugar, and score in diagonal lines with a clean red- 
hot poker. The burnt sugar gives to the omelet a 
delicious flavor. 

" This is a convenient dessert for an emergency, and 
may be prepared in ten minutes if one has the oranges.' 7 
(From Mrs. D. A. Lincoln's "Boston Cook Book.") 



POTATOES 

Next to wheat flour, potatoes are our most common 
form of starch food. The potato is a tuber, a native 
of America, and may be said to have been discovered 
to the civilized world by the Spaniards, who found it 
growing in Chili and Peru. Thence it was carried to 
Spain, and from there to other parts of Europe, some 
time in the sixteenth century. Potatoes were at first 
used as luxuries, but are now almost ranked among 
the necessities of life. 

The composition of potatoes (Letherby) is as follows : 

Water 75.00% 

Starch 18.80% 

Nitrogenous matter 2.00% 

Sugar 3.00% 

Fat 20% 

Salts 1.00%1 

From this we see that starch is the principal nutri- 
ent, therefore potatoes in use for food should be associ- 
ated with nitrogenous substances, such as eggs, meat, 
fish, and milk. The potash salts which potatoes con- 
tain are very valuable. According to Letherby, an 

1 Another analysis is that of Payen, the distinguished French chemist. 

Water ™.4°„ 

Starch, sugar, pectose 21.2% 

Nitrogenous matter 1-7% 

Fat 1% 

Cellulose and epidermis 1.5% 

Inorganic matter 1.1% 

Total 100.00% 

Polil found the proportion of starch, judging by specific gravity in dif- 
ferent varieties, to be as follows : 16.38%, 17.11%, 18.43%, 18.95%, 20.45%, 
21.32%, 24.14%. Dr. SMITH'S " Food." 

161 



162 RECIPES 

average of thirty -one analyses of the ash of potatoes 
gave 59.8 per cent, of potash, 19.1 per cent, of phos- 
phoric acid, the other ingredients being in exceedingly 
small proportions. These salts are necessary to a 
healthy condition of the blood. Potatoes are a valu- 
able antiscorbutic. 

According to Mattieu Williams, scurvy prevailed 
in Norway to a very serious extent until the intro- 
duction of the potato; and Lang, with other good 
authorities, testifies that its disappearance is due to 
the use of potatoes by a people who formerly were in- 
sufficiently supplied with salts-giving vegetable food. 

The salts of the potato are most abundant in or 
near* the skin, and the decision of the question as to 
whether potatoes shall be pared or not before cook- 
ing is somewhat aided by this fact. For persons 
who eat but few other fresh vegetables by all means 
leave the skins on, but for those who have access to 
a good kitchen garden and have plenty of other 
vegetables and fruits from which to get their salts, 
•it makes no important difference whether the skins 
are removed. 

The potato is eminently a starch food, and this 
knowledge indicates the method of treatment in cook- 
ing. Since starch is its principal ingredient (the 
amount of nitrogenous matter being very small), if 
it is cooked with reference to that alone, it will be 
done in the best possible manner. 

Starch, in order to be rendered most digestible and 
acceptable to the human system, must be subjected to 
a high temperature in the presence of some liquid. At 
401° Pahr. (see pages 33 and 34) it is converted into 
dextrine. This change, if not performed outside the 
body, will be done in the ordinary processes of diges- 
tion after the starch is eaten ; therefore the nearer we 
approach to it in cooking, the more perfectly is the 
food prepared which contains it. 



RECIPES 163 

Usually the first vegetable prescribed by the physi- 
cian for a sick person who is beginning to use solids, is 
a baked potato. A baked potato, however, may be no 
better than a boiled potato unless it is cooked in so 
high a temperature that the starch is affected. Boiled 
potatoes cannot be subjected to a higher temperature 
than 212° Fahr. Baked potatoes may be done in such 
a way that they are but little better than boiled — for 
instance, done in a slow oven. On the other hand, 
if they are put into a temperature of 380° or 400° 
Fahr., or a hot oven, they will be done in such a man- 
ner that the conversion of starch will in a degree take 
place, and they will be consequently both palatable 
and easily digested. 

Potatoes roasted in hot ashes or embers are deli- 
cious, and for the same reason. But it must not be 
understood that by cooking potatoes in a high tem- 
perature the starch which they contain is all changed 
into dextrine. This does not usually take place ex- 
cept in slight degree, but by the high temperature it 
is better prepared for this change in the processes of 
digestion. Probably what does take place is a sort 
of hydration of the starch, resulting in the complete 
swelling and final bursting of the granules, with pos- 
sibly an intermediate change between this and dex- 
trine. Just at the moment when potatoes are done 
they should be immediately taken from the fire and 
served at once. The potato is capable of being made 
into a variety of dishes, and when properly prepared 
has a delicate flavor which is very acceptable to most 
people. It is one of the most easily digested forms of 
starch-containing food. 

BOILED POTATOES 

For boiled potatoes, if they are to be served whole, 
select those of the same shape and size. Wash them 



164 RECIPES 

under a stream of water with a vegetable brush. Pare 
carefully so as not to waste the potato, and evenly, 
that they may look smooth and shapely. Cook them 
in a granite-ware kettle or covered saucepan, in 
enough salted boiling water to just cover them. If 
cold water is used, there is a greater loss of potash salts 
by solution, because of the longer time of exposure to 
the action of the liquid. The proportion of salt should 
be one teaspoon to a quart of water. 

Potatoes being already hydrated, it makes no great 
difference whether they are put into hot or cold water, 
except in the time which will be required to boil them 
and the slight loss of salts. For medium-sized pota- 
toes from thirty to forty minutes will be necessary 
after they begin to boil. The moment they feel soft 
when pierced with a fork they are done. Take them 
at once from the fire, drain off all the water, and dry 
them by gently moving the pan back and forth over 
the top of the stove for a minute. Serve as quickly 
as possible. Unless they are to be eaten at once, it is 
better to mash them, and keep them in the oven until 
needed. 

MASHED POTATOES 

For mashed potatoes the uneven sizes may be used; 
the large ones should be cut into small pieces. Pre- 
pare according to the foregoing rule, and when they 
are cooked and dried, add salt, butter, pepper, and 
cream, in the following proportions: 

1 Pint of potatoes. 

1 Teaspoon of butter. 
£ Teaspoon of salt. 

J Saltspoon of pepper (white). 

2 Tablespoons of sweet cream or of milk. 






RECIPES 165 

Put into the potatoes the butter, salt, and pepper, 
and mash them on the stove, in the dish in which they 
were boiled, to keep them hot. Use an open wire 
potato-masher, and mash quickly so that they may be 
light and dry, not " gummy." Last put in the cream, 
mix for a moment, and serve immediately in a covered 
vegetable-dish. If it is necessary to keep them for a 
time, arrange them like a cake in the dish in which 
they are to be served, smooth over the top, dot it 
with little bits of butter, or brush it over with milk 
or the beaten white of egg, aud brown them a delicate 
golden color by placing the dish on the grate in the 
oven. 

BAKED POTATOES 

For baked potatoes, select those which are of uni- 
form size and not very large. Scrub them thoroughly 
in a stream of water from the faucet, to wash off every 
particle of sand, for many like to eat the outside. 
Bake them in a hot oven for from forty-five to fifty 
minutes. If the potatoes are of medium size, and do 
not cook in that time, it indicates that the oven is not 
of the proper temperature. 

Baked potatoes, not being exposed to the solvent 
action of a liquid, lose none of their potash salts in 
cooking, as boiled potatoes do. The same is true of 
those roasted, and of those fried raw in deep fat. 



ROASTED POTATOES 

Bury medium-sized potatoes in the embers or ashes 
of an open fire for a half hour or more, according to 
their size. At the end of that time dust off the ashes 
with a brush. Burst the shells by squeezing them in 

12 



166 BECIPES 



the hand, and serve at once with salt, and bntter or 
cream. Either baked or roasted potatoes are delicious 
eaten with sweet cream, salt ; and pepper. 



CREAMED POTATOES 

Left-over potatoes may be used for this dish, or 
potatoes may be boiled on purpose for it. Whichever 
is used, cut them into half -inch dice, put them in an 
omelet-pan, season them with salt and pepper, and 
pour in milk until it is even with the surface of the 
potato ; then simmer gently until all the milk is ab- 
sorbed, or for about half an hour. For every pint of 
potato make a cup of white sauce, season it with 
a saltspoon of salt and a teaspoon of chopped pars- 
ley, and pour it over. Potatoes are very nice done 
in this way, if care is taken in simmering them in the 
milk. Unless this is done according to the rule, they 
will have the cold-potato taste, which is not at all 
palatable. 

A little chopped onion may replace the parsley with 
good effect. 

DUCHESS POTATOES 

1 Pint of potatoes. 

1 Teaspoon of butter. 
J Teaspoon of salt. 
lEgg. 

i Teaspoon of white pepper. 

2 Tablespoons of cream. 

Wash, pare, and boil the potatoes. Drain out every 
drop of water, and dry them in the usual way. When 
dry and mealy, put in the butter, salt, and pepper, and 
mash them thoroughly and quickly. If potatoes are 



RECIPES 167 

mashed for a long time slowly, they become waxy, 
so endeavor to do it quickly and as lightly as possible. 
Then add the egg, well beaten, and the cream ; mix, 
and form it into a flat cake (on a board) about half an 
inch thick. Cut it into oblongs or squares, or shape 
it into rounds or balls, brush over with the beaten 
white of egg, or milk, and bake in a hot oven until 
a delicate brown. Serve the cakes on a platter as 
soon as they are done. 



MEATS 

(beoiled) 

Of the different ways of cooking the flesh of ani- 
mals, especially for the sick, broiling is at once the 
most delicious and the most difficult. 

The difference between broiled meat and meat 
cooked in water is that the broiled meat is cooked in 
its own juices, while the other is not. The albumen 
is coagulated in both cases, and the gelatinous and 
fibrinous tissues are softened by being heated in a 
liquid. In broiling or roasting meat the juices are 
retained, while in stewing they go more or less into 
the water, and the loosening of the fibers and solu- 
tion of the gelatin and fibrin may be carried further, 
on account of the longer exposure to heat and the 
larger amount of solvent. In broiling, as the meat is 
to be cooked in its own juices, it is evident that these 
must be retained as completely as possible; and in 
order to succeed in this, we have to struggle with a 
dry heat, which may not only cause rapid evaporation, 
but may volatilize or decompose some of the flavoring 
principles. 1 

We should, therefore, endeavor to have such a tem- 
perature as shall at first be sufficiently high to quickly 
coagulate, even harden, the albumen in the outside 
surface, and thus form a layer or protecting coat over 
the whole, and then to so modify and regulate the 

1 Mattieu Williams. 
168 



RECIPES 169 

heat afterward that the interior shall be raised to 
such a temperature as shall properly, cook it without 
loss of its nutritive properties. 

The time of exposure will be different for different 
kinds of meat — beef and mutton requiring a shorter 
time than iamb, chicken, or game. Beef and mutton 
are best when cooked rare ; lamb, chicken, and some 
kinds of game are best when well done. Game with 
white flesh should be well done; all other hinds, gener- 
ally speaking, may be rare. 

Much of the science of cooking depends upon a 
knowledge of the effects of heat j and as many changes 
in food are due to the dissociation caused by heat, the 
degree of change depending upon the temperature, 
the value of a sound knowledge of the subject can- 
not fail to be seen. 

To illustrate: aside from the evaporation of juices 
and coagulation of albumen in a piece of steak, the 
chemical separation of its constituents, especially of 
the outside shell or sheath, will vary with the degree 
of heat in which it is cooked. 

Not only for meats, but for most animal foods, a 
cooking temperature less than 212° but above 160° is 
most advisable. This applies particularly to milk, 
eggs, oysters, meats, and fish. Of course in broiling 
we partially sacrifice the outside by cooking in a 
high temperature for the sake of preserving the inner 
portions. 

BEEF 

Beef is, without doubt, our most valuable kind of 
meat. It is nutritious, of excellent flavor, and com- 
paratively easy of digestion. It contains many of the 
substances necessary to nourish the body — water, fat, 
albumen, gelatin, fibrin, salts, and flavoring proper- 



170 RECIPES 

ties. The direct nutrients which it contains are fat 
and protein. 

The quality of beef varies with the age of the ani- 
mal and the manner in which it has been fattened. 
It requires a considerable amount of study to be 
able to select a good roast or steak. If the fat be 
of light, golden color, firm and thick, and the lean 
be streaked with fine lines of fat, it is one indication 
of a well-nourished animal. A reliable dealer may 
be of great service in aiding one to distinguish be- 
tween good and poor qualities. 

The best portions for steak are from the loin, top 
of the round, and rump. The cut called " porter- 
house" is from near the middle of the loin, and is 
the best portion of the animal. It has a rich, fine 
flavor, and contains a section of tenderloin. Sirloin 
steak is from the loin, and is also very nice. The 
first and second cuts from the top of the round are 
excellent, containing much well-flavored juice. The 
composition of a round steak free from bones is as 
follows (in 100 parts) : 



■i 



Protein, gelatin, fibrin, etc 23.00% 

Nutrients. . <j Fats 9.00% ■ 

Mineral matters 1.30% 

Water 66.70% 

Total 100.00% 

Atwater. 



The time given below for the digestion of beef is 
taken from calculations by Dr. Beaumont: 

Hours. Minutes. 

Beefsteak broiled 3 

Beef, fresh, lean, roasted 3 30 

Beef fried 4 



EECIPES 171 



VALUE OF BEEF 

As material for muscle 19 

As heat-giver 14 

As food for Ibrain and nervous system 2 

Water 65 

Atwater. 



To Broil Steak. Select a steak from the loin-, top of 
the round, or rump. Have it cut an inch and a half 
(or, better, two inches) thick. If there is a great deal 
of fat, trim off part of it, and wipe the steak with a 
clean, wet cloth. A fire of glowing red coals is neces- 
sary to do broiling well. Place the steak in a wire 
broiler, and put it as near the coals as possible (one 
writer says plunge it into the hottest part of the fire), 
count ten and turn it, count again and turn again until 
it has been turned five or six times so as to quickly cook 
a thin layer all over the outside, to shut in the juices 
of the meat, and to form a protecting sheath of 
coagulated albumen over the whole. Then lift the 
broiler away from the coals and do the rest of the 
process slowly, — that is, in a lower temperature, that 
the heat may have time to penetrate to the center of 
the piece and raise the juices to a sufficiently high 
temperature to soften the fibers, but not so high as 
to hornify the albumen or char the outside. Turn it 
every half minute until done. 

If the fat melts and flames, do not lift up the broiler; 
it will do no harm, and the black deposit which results 
is only carbon. This carbon is not injurious; the color 
is not especially attractive, but the taste will be good. 
The cautious cook who does not appreciate this will lift 
up the broiler, thus cooling the meat, and will perhaps 



172 RECIPES 

blow out the flame, a proceeding which is open to 
question as a point of neatness. 

As coal fires are never twice alike, and the amount 
of heat sent out is variable, it is constantly necessary 
to judge anew as to where the broiler shall be placed. 
A certain amount of practice is required to be able 
to broil with even fair success. When done a steak 
should be brown on the outside, pink and juicy inside, 
and plump, not shriveled. Steak should be at least an 
inch thick, otherwise the proportion of surface ex- 
posed to the heat will be so great in proportion to 
the amount of meat as to cause the loss by evapora- 
tion of most of the juice, thus making the steak 
tough* and dry. 

From five to seven minutes will be required to cook 
a steak an inch thick 5 if an inch and a half thick, 
from eight to ten minutes. Serve the steak on a hot 
platter after having seasoned both sides of it with salt 
and pepper, but no butter. If it is desirable to use 
butter, serve it with the steak rather than on it. 



HAMBURG STEAK. No. 1 

(scraped beef) 

Cut a piece of tender steak half an inch thick. Lay 
it on a meat-board, and with a sharp knife scrape off 
the soft part until there is nothing left but the tough, 
stringy fibers. Season this pulp with salt and pep- 
per, make it into little flat, round cakes half an inch 
thick, and broil them two minutes. Serve on rounds 
of buttered toast. This is a safe and dainty way to 
prepare steak for one who is just beginning to eat 
meat. When it is not convenient to have glowing 
coals, these meat-cakes may be broiled in a very hot 
omelet-pan. 



RECIPES 173 



HAMBURG STEAK. No. 2 

Pound a thin piece of beefsteak until the fibers are 
broken ; season it with salt and pepper, fold and 
pound again; then broil it three or four minutes over 
a clear hot fire. Serve at once. 



TENDERLOIN STEAK 

Broil a tenderloin steak, and at the same time a 
small piece of round steak, which usually contains 
a great deal of well-flavored juice. Cut the round 
steak into small pieces, and squeeze the juice from it 
over the tenderloin. Tenderloin steak is tender, but 
usually neither juicy nor particularly well flavored. 
By this method one gets a delicious steak. 



BEEFSTEAK A LA MAITRE D'HOTEL 

Broil a steak, place it on a platter, and season it with 
salt and pepper ; sprinkle it with finely chopped pars- 
ley, drops of lemon-juice, and some little bits of 
butter. Set it in the oven long enough to soften the 
butter. A steak done in this way may be made quite 
attractive by garnishing it with hot mashed and sea- 
soned potatoes which have been squeezed through a 
potato-strainer. A colander may be used in lieu of a 
strainer. The potato loses some of its heat in the 
process, so care must be taken to have the dish very 
hot or to place it in the oven until it becomes so. 

A steak may always be garnished with parsley, 
water-cress, or slices of lemon. 






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KECIPES 175 

course, the chicken should be young, the flesh of good 
color and well nourished, and, as in the buying of 
beef, one may rely upon the judgment of a good 
dealer. The way in which chickens are fed has much 
to do with the flavor of the meat. 



BIRDS 

Various kinds of birds, such as squab, partridge, 
plover, snipe, pheasant, etc, are particularly appro- 
priate food for the sick, partly because we associate 
them with the dainty things of life, but more on 
account of the valuable nutrient properties which 
they contain. They are especially rich in salts (par- 
ticularly the phosphates), which are so much needed 
by a system exhausted by disease. 

Birds which feed mostly on grains, such as the 
partridge and the pheasant, will bear transportation, 
and will keep, in cold weather, a long time. Birds 
with dark flesh, which live mostly on animal food, 
decay quickly. 

A general rule for the cooking of game is this : that 
with white flesh should be well done, that with dark 
should be rare, and usually is only properly cooked when 
served so, as in the case of woodcock, duck, and snipe. 

When in Season. Some birds, such as reed-birds, 
partridge, and plover, have a season which varies 
slightly in different parts of the country, according to 
the game laws of different States. In Maryland, the 
following birds may be found in market according to 
the time stated : 



Squabs All the year. 

Partridge November 1 — December 25. 

Snipe. September — December. 

Plover September — November. 



176 KECIPES 

Pheasants October — January. 

Woodcock August — February. 

Rice- or reed-birds September — Middle October. 

Field-larks Summer and early autumn. 

Grouse (prairie-hen) All the year. 

Pigeons All the year. 

The cleansing and preparation of birds is in general 
carried ont in the same manner as with chickens. 
When there is any variation from this, it will be men- 
tioned under the rule for each. 



SaUABS 

Squabs are young domestic pigeons. The Philadel- 
phia market supplies nearly all of those used in the 
eastern part of the United States. 

Remove the feathers, and all pin-feathers ; cut off 
the head and legs, and split the bird down the back 
carefully with a sharp knife. Lift out carefully the 
contents of the body, which are contained in a little 
sac or delicate membrane ; they should be taken out 
without breaking. Do not forget the windpipe, crop, 
lungs, and kidneys. Wash, and prepare the squab in 
the same manner that chicken is done, except the dip- 
ping in butter and dredging with flour; this may 
be omitted, as squabs are generally fat and do not 
require it. Broil from twelve to fifteen minutes, 
according to the size of the bird and the intensity of 
the fire. It should be well done. Serve on hot but- 
tered toast. 

PARTRIDGE 

The partridge is a white-fleshed bird. It may be 
broiled or roasted. 



EECIPES 177 

To Broil. Follow the same rule as that given for 
squab, except dip in melted butter and dredge with 
flour. 

To Roast. Prepare in the same manner as for broil- 
ing, except dip in butter and dredge twice. Do not 
forget the salt and pepper. Then skewer the body so 
that it will resemble a whole bird, and look as if it 
had not been split down the back. Spread a teaspoon 
of butter on the breast, and bake it in a hot oven for 
twenty to thirty minutes. Partridge done in this 
way is delicious, for the butter enriches the meat, 
which is naturally dry. It should be served well 
done, not rare, on hot buttered toast, with currant 
jelly. 

The season for partridges is in most States during 
the last part of the autumn, and generally the laws in 
regard to them are rigid. Nevertheless, they can be 
bought from the middle of October until May, or the 
beginning of warm weather. The partridge is a bird 
that keeps well, bears transportation, and is sent from 
one part of the country to another, many coming from 
the West when the season is over in the Eastern 
States. It is a medium-sized bird, with mottled brown 
feathers, which are black at the ends, especially those 
on the back, and mottled brown and silver-gray on 
the breast. 

SNIPE 

Snipe may be both prepared and cooked as par- 
tridges are — that is, broiled and roasted. The snipe 
has rich, dark meat, and therefore will not need to be 
dipped in butter for either broiling or roasting. It 
is about the same size as a squab, but as it is to be 
cooked rare (it is more tender and of nicer flavor so), 
ten minutes is sufficient time for broiling, and from 



178 RECIPES 

twelve to fifteen minutes for roasting in a hot oven. 
Serve it with currant jelly on hot buttered toast. 

The snipe has a long bill, from two to two and a 
half inches in length. It is about the size of a squab, 
with dark, almost black, wing-feathers tipped with 
white, and the feathers of the back are intermingled 
with flecks of golden brown. The under sides of the 
wings are pearl-gray, and the breast is white. 



PHEASANTS 

Pheasants may be broiled or roasted. As the meat 
is dry, they should be well rubbed with soft butter 
and dredged with flour. It is a good way, after put- 
ting on the salt and pepper, to dip the bird into 
melted butter, then dredge it with flour, then lay on 
soft butter and dredge a second time 5 or, when it is 
skewered and ready for the oven, it may be spread 
thickly over the breast with softened butter. Care 
must be taken that the very thick portion of the 
breast be cooked through, as pheasant should be well 
done, and from one half to three quarters of an hour 
will be necessary for this. 



WOODCOCK 

The woodcock is about the size of a partridge, with 
mottled dark brown and gray feathers, except on the 
breast, where they are a sort of light salmon brown. It 
has a long slender beak, somewhat like that of a 
snipe. 

Prepare woodcock like squab, only do not cut off 
the head, as the brain is considered a dainty by epi- 
cures. Remove the skin from the head, and tie or 



RECIPES 179 

skewer it back against the body. Use salt and pep- 
per for seasoning, bnt neither flour nor butter, as the 
woodcock has dark, rich flesh. Broil from eight to 
ten minutes. Serve rare on toast. 



REED-BIRDS 

Reed-birds are to be prepared after the general 
rule for dressing birds. Although they are some- 
times cooked whole, it is better to draw them. Split 
them down the back, remove the contents of the body, 
and after washing and wiping them, string three or 
four on a skewer, pulling it through their sides, so 
that they shall appear whole. Roast in a shallow pan 
in a hot oven, from eight to ten minutes; or, before 
roasting, wrap each one in a very thin slice of fat 
pork and pin it on with a skewer (wire). 

Broiled. Prepare as for roasting, except peel off 
the skin, taking the feathers with it. Broil from two 
to four minutes. Serve on toast. 

It is a good plan to skin all small birds. 

The reed-bird is the bobolink of New England, the 
reed-bird of Pennsylvania, and the rice-bird of the 
Carolinas. 



GROUSE 

The grouse or prairie-hen is in season all the year, 
but is at its best during the fall and winter. 

To Prepare. Clean, wash, and wipe it. Lard the 
breast, or fasten to it with slender skewers a thin 
slice of salt pork. Grouse has dry flesh, consequently 
it will be improved by rubbing softened butter over 
it, as well as by using pork. Sprinkle on a little salt, 



180 RECIPES 

dredge it with flour, and cook in a quick oven for 
thirty minutes. 

Grouse are also very nice potted. After they are 
made ready for cooking, fry a little fat pork and some 
chopped onion together in a large deep spider for a 
few minutes, then lay in the grouse, cover the spider, 
and fry until the outside of each bird is somewhat 
browned, or for twenty minutes, slowly. Then put 
them into a granite- ware kettle and stew until tender, 
which will take from one to two hours. When they 
are done, lift them out, thicken the liquid slightly 
with flour, and season it with salt and pepper for a 
gravy. Serve the grouse on a deep platter with the 
gravy poured around, or simply season the liquid 
and cook tiny dumplings in it, which may be served 
around the birds. Then thicken the liquid and pour 
over. The amount of onion to be fried with the pork 
should not exceed half a teaspoon for each bird, and 
of pork the proportion of a cubic inch to a bird is 
enough. 

Pigeons potted according to these directions for 
grouse are excellent. 



FIELD-LARKS 

Field-larks and robins may be prepared and cooked 
in exactly the same way that reed-birds are done. 
Robins are good in autumn. 



VENISON 

Venison is in season during the late autumn and 
winter. When "hung" for a proper length of time, 
it is the most easily digested of all meats. For this 



RECIPES 181 

reason it is a favorite with epicures who eat late sup- 
pers. According to Dr. Beaumont it is digested in 
one hour and thirty-five minutes. 1 

Steaks may be taken either from the loin or the 
round. Broil them according to the rule for beefsteak, 
and serve very hot with a slice of lemon or a little 
claret poured over. 

Venison will not please an epicure unless it is hot 
and rare when served. To accomplish this in a per- 
fectly satisfactory manner, it has become the fashion 
in families to have the broiling done on the table, in 
a chafing-dish, each person attending to his own steak, 
and cooking it according to his particular fancy. 



MUTTON 

A good piece of meat freed from refuse, — that is, 
indigestible portions such as bone, etc., — if neatly pre- 
pared and properly cooked, is practically entirely di- 
gested. If carelessly handled and cooked so that its 
juices are evaporated, and its natural flavors unde- 
veloped or destroyed, it is far from being an accep- 
table morsel of food. 

Mutton requires more care in cooking than beef, 
or, in other words, it is more easily spoiled in that 
process; but when done with due consideration, it is 
a most acceptable meat. A thick, carefully broiled, 
hot, juicy mutton chop just from the coals is a very 
delicious morsel. The same piece with the adjec- 
tives reversed, — that is, done without thought, per- 
haps raw in the middle, charred on the outside, and 
cold, — is far from being acceptable to even a healthy 
person. 

Just inside of the outer skin of the sheep there is 

i From actual experiment. 
13 



182 RECIPES 

a thick, tough membrane enveloping the whole ani- 
mal; the peculiar flavor called "woolly," which makes 
mutton disagreeable to many, is given to the meat 
largely by this covering. It is supposed that the oil 
from the wool strikes through. An important point 
in the preparation of the meat for cooking is the re- 
moval of this skin, for otherwise the unpleasant taste 
will be very strong, and the chop or roast conse- 
quently far from as delicate as it might be. 

The value of mutton as a nutrient is practically the 
same as that of beef, as may be seen by comparing the 
following table with that of beef previously given. 

As material for muscle 21 

As heat-giver 14 

As food for brain and nervous system 2 

Water 63 



DIGESTIBILITY OF MUTTON 

Hours. Minutes. 

Broiled 3 

Boiled 3 

Eoasted 3 15 



MUTTON CHOPS 

For the same reason that is given in the rule for 
beefsteak, mutton chops should be thick. When the 
fat is abundant and little lines of fat run through the 
flesh, it is an indication of a good quality of meat. 

To prepare the chops for broiling, cut away the 
tough outside skin, trim off a part of the fat, but not 
all, and any portion of the spina] cord which may be 
attached. Broil in the same manner that steak is 
done — that is, close to the glowing coals — for about 
one minute, turning often, and at a distance from 



EECIPES 183 

them for the rest of the time, which" should be from 
four to six minutes for a chop an inch thick. 

Mutton, like beef, should be served rare. Season 
chops with salt and pepper, but no butter, as the meat 
is rich in fat and does not require it. Tomato-sauce 
is an old-fashioned accompaniment of a chop, and may 
or may not be served with it. For breakfast it is bet- 
ter omitted. 



Chops are fairly good pan-broiled. The same prin- 
ciple is to be followed as in cooking over coals — that 
is, a high degree of heat at first, to sear over the out- 
side before the juices escape, and a low temperature 
afterward; therefore heat the pan or spider exceed- 
ingly hot (use no fat), drop in the chop, count ten and 
turn, count again and turn again for about one min- 
ute, then draw the pan to the side or back of the 
stove and finish slowly. A chop one inch thick will 
be perfectly done in from five to seven minutes. If 
the pan is hot enough at first, there will be no loss of 
juice or flavor. Season and serve in the same manner 
as broiled chops. 

FRENCH CHOPS 

Trim a chop until there is nothing left but the 
round muscle at the thick end, with a little fat about 
it. Cut away all the meat from the bone, which will 
then look like a handle with a neat morsel at one 
end. Broil. 

CHOPS IN PAPER 

Spread a piece of paper evenly and thickly with 
butter. Lay upon it a nicely trimmed chop, and 



184 RECIPES 

double the paper with the edges together. Fold and 
crease these edges on the three sides; then fold and 
crease again, so that the butter cannot run out. These 
folds should be half an inch wide. It will be neces- 
sary to have the sheet of paper (note-paper or thick 
brown paper will do) considerably more than twice as 
large as the chop. Broil over coals, not too near, 
turning often so that the temperature shall not get so 
high as to ignite the paper. A chop broiled in this 
way is basted in the butter and its own juices, and is 
very delicate. Be careful not to let the paper ignite, 
and yet do not have it so far from the coals that the 
meat will not cook. This is best accomplished by 
holding the broiler near the coals and turning often : 
that is, about once in twenty seconds. There is no 
danger that the paper will catch fire if the broiler is 
turned often enough. A chop three quarters of an 
inch thick will cook in five minutes, one an inch thick 
in eight. Should the paper catch fire, it need not de- 
stroy the chop. Take it out, put it into a fresh paper, 
and try again. The chop should be served very hot, 
seasoned with salt and pepper. 



LAMB CHOPS 

Lamb chops are very delicate and tender. They 
may be known by the lighter color of the flesh as 
compared with mutton chops, and by the whiteness of 
the fat. Prepare and broil them in the same way 
that mutton chops are broiled, except that they are 
to be well done instead of rare, and to accomplish 
this longer cooking by about three minutes will be 
required : for a chop an inch thick, from eight to ten 
minutes, instead of from four to six as for mutton. 



STEWS 

CHICKEN STEW 

1 Cup of chicken meat. 

1 Teaspoon of chopped onion. 

2 Tablespoons of white turnip. 
1 Saltspoon of curry-powder. 

J Teaspoon of salt. 
A little white pepper. 
1 Tablespoon of rice. 

Left-over broiled chicken or the cuttings from a 
cold roast will do for this dish. Divide the meat into 
small pieces, excluding all skin, gristle, tendons, and 
bone. Boil the bones and scraps, in water enough to 
cover them, for an hour. Then strain the liquor, skim 
off the fat, and put into it the chicken, onion, turnip 
(which should be cut in small cubes), curry-powder, 
salt, pepper, and rice. Simmer all together for an 
hour. Serve. The vegetables and curry flavor the 
meat, and a most easily digested and palatable dish 
is the result. 

Potatoes may be substituted for the rice, and celery- 
salt, bay-leaves, or sweet marjoram for the curry. If 
herbs be used, tie them in a bag and drop it into the 
stew, of course removing it before carrying the dish 
to the table. 

The above rule will make enough stew for two 
persons. By multiplying each item in it, any amount 
may be made. 

185 



186 RECIPES 



BEEF STEW 



Use for beef stew either cold beefsteak, the portions 
left from a roast, or uncooked meat. 

1 Cup of beef cut into small pieces. 

1 Teaspoon of minced onion. 

2 Tablespoons of turnip. 
2 Tablespoons of carrot. 
J Teaspoon of salt. 

i Cup of cut potatoes,. 
A little black pepper. 

If beefsteak is selected, free it from fat, gristle, and 
bone, and cut it into small pieces. Fry the onion, 
carrot, and turnip (which should be cut into small 
cubes) in a little butter, slowly, until they are brown. 
Add them to the meat, cover it with water, and sim- 
mer for one hour. Then skim off the fat, put in the 
potatoes (cut in half -inch cubes) and the salt and pep- 
per. Boil for half an hour more. Serve in a covered 
dish with croutons. 

The vegetables are fried partly to give the desir- 
able brown color to the stew, and partly because 
their flavor is finer done that way. A beefsteak stew 
is a very savory and satisfactory dish. If fresh, un- 
cooked meat is used, cut it into small. pieces and fry 
it in a hot buttered pan for a few minutes, to brown 
the outside and thus obtain the agreeable flavor that 
is developed in all meats by a high temperature. 
Simmer two and a half hours before putting in the 
potatoes. 

When the left-over portions of a roast are used, the 
meat should be freed from all gristle, bone, and fat ; 
these may be boiled separately for additional broth. 



RECIPES 187 



MUTTON STEW 

Exactly the same rule may be followed for mutton 
stew as for beef. Do not forget to trim the meat 
carefully. Use only clear pieces of the lean. If a 
roast is used and there are bones, boil them in water 
with the scraps for additional broth. Mutton stew is 
good made with pearl-barley instead of potatoes, in the 
proportion of one teaspoon of grain to a cup of meat ; 
it should be put in at the beginning of the cooking. 
A half teaspoon of chopped parsley is a nice addition, 
or a few tablespoons of stewed and strained tomato. 



SWEETBREADS 

Sweetbreads are the pancreatic glands of the calf. 
They are good while the animal lives on milk, but 
change their nature when it begins to eat grass and 
hay, and are then no longer useful for food. The 
gland consists of two parts, the long, slender portion 
called the u neck " sweetbread, and the round, thick 
part known as the "heart" sweetbread. These are 
sometimes sold separately, but they should be to- 
gether. Among epicures sweetbreads are considered 
a dainty, and are certainly a most acceptable form of 
food for the sick. 

To Prepare. As soon as sweetbreads come from 
market, they should be cleaned and parboiled. Cut 
off any refuse, — such as pipes, fat, and all bruised 
portions, — and wash them quickly in cold water. 
Pour into a saucepan some boiling water, salt it, and 
add a little lemon-juice or vinegar (not more than a 
teaspoon to a pint of water) ; boil the sweetbreads 
in this for fifteen minutes if they are to be creamed, 
broiled, or baked, or again cooked in any way; but 
if they are to be served plain with peas, they should 
remain on twenty-five or thirty minutes. When 
done, drain off the water and set them aside to cool. 
Sweetbreads must always be parboiled as soon as 
possible after being taken from the animal, as they 
decay quickly. Sweetbreads may be made white by 
soaking them in cold water for half an hour; the 
flavor, however, is said to be injured by so doing. 

188 



RECIPES 189 



CREAMED SWEETBREADS 

Make a cream sauce with a cup of sweet cream, a 
tablespoon of flour, and half a tablespoon of butter. 
Then cut a sweetbread into half-inch cubes, salt it 
slightly, and sprinkle on a little white pepper. Mix 
equal quantities of it and the cream sauce together, 
put the mixture into individual porcelain patty-dishes 
or scallop-dishes, sprinkle the top with buttered 
crumbs, and bake on the grate in a hot oven for ten 
minutes. This will give sufficient time to finish the 
cooking of the parboiled sweetbread without harden- 
ing it. 

The sauce may be made quite acceptably with milk, 
by using a tablespoon of butter instead of half that 
quantity. This is a good way to prepare sweet- 
breads, and one particularly desirable for the sick. 
They will be tender and delicate if care is taken 
not to overcook them in either the boiling or the 
baking. 

FRICASSEED SWEETBREADS 

Cut a parboiled sweetbread into half-inch cubes. 
Then make a sauce with half a teaspoon of flour, 
a teaspoon of butter, three fourths of a cup of strong 
chicken broth, and one fourth of a cup of sweet cream. 
Heat the broth. Cook the flour in the butter, letting 
the two simmer together until brown, then add the 
hot broth, a little at a time, stirring constantly, and 
last put in the cream. Season the sauce with a bit of 
salt, a little black pepper, half a teaspoon of lemon- 
juice, and a speck of curry-powder. Roll the cut 
sweetbread into it, simmer for five minutes, and 
serve on sippets, or on squares of dry toast in a cov- 



190 EECIPES 

ered dish. The chicken broth may be made by boil- 
ing the bones and cuttings of a roast, and milk may 
be substituted for the cream. 



SWEETBREADS WITH PEAS 

A favorite way of serving sweetbreads is with fresh 
peas. They should be boiled in salted water and 
arranged in the middle of a platter with the peas 
(cooked and seasoned) around them. Serve them 
with a cream sauce. Or the peas may be piled in the 
middle of a platter, the sweetbreads arranged as a 
borde*r ? and the sauce poured around the whole. Sweet- 
breads larded and baked may also be served in this 
way. 



FISH 

Fish fresh from the lakes or sea is excellent food. 
The point of freshness is a very important one, for 
all kinds spoil quickly, and, unless one can be quite 
sure how long they have been out of the water, it is 
better to find some other food for the invalid. Some 
shell-fish, such as crabs and lobsters, are especially 
dangerous, and should not be eaten by either sick or 
well, unless they are known to be in perfect condition. 
For the sick they had better not be used at all. 

"The flesh of good fresh fish is firm and hard, and 
will rise at once when pressed with the finger. If 
the eyes be dull or sunken, the gills pale, and the 
flesh soft and flabby, the fish is not fresh." (Mrs. 
Lincoln.) 

Fish with red blood, such for instance as salmon, 
are highly nutritious but not easily digested, partly 
because of the amount of fat distributed through the 
flesh. Herring and mackerel belong to this class. 
White fish, such as cod, haddock, turbot, halibut, and 
flounder, contain comparatively little fat, and that 
mostly in the liver. They are easy of digestion, and 
possess a delicate flavor. When in season and just 
from their native element, these fish are delicious, 
and make excellent food for the sick, on account of 
the ease with which they are digested. 

To Prepare. If fish be brought from market with 
the scales on, as is usually the case, it is a very easy 

191 



192 RECIPES 

matter to remove them. A large sheet of brown 
paper, or a newspaper, and a knife not very sharp, are 
all that are necessary. Spread the paper on the table, 
lay the fish npon it, and then with the blade of the 
knife held parallel with the body of the fish, or nearly 
so, not at right angles to it, pnsh off the scales. 
They will come off easily, and will not fly unless you 
turn the edge of the knife too much. Should this 
happen, the paper will catch the scales, and when the 
fish is finished all the refuse can be rolled up in the 
paper and burnedo After removing the scales, cut 
off the head, fins, and tail. Make a slit on the under 
side, and take out the contents of the cavity, clearing 
out everything that is not flesh. Then wash the fish 
quickly in a stream of cold water, wipe it, and set it 
in a cool place (a refrigerator if you have it) until it is 
required for cooking. Do not lay it directly on ice, 
for the juices of the fish are dissolved by the water 
which is formed as the ice melts, and its delicate 
flavor is thus impaired. 



WHEN IN SEASON 

Cod All the year. 

Haddock All the year. 

Cusk Winter. 

Halibut All the year. 

Flounders All the year. 

Salmon May to September. 

Shad Spring. 

Bluefish June to October. 

Whitefish Winter. 

Swordfish July to September. 

Smelts September to March. 

Perch Spring and summer. 

Mackerel April to October. 

Oysters September to May. 

Clams All the year. 



EECIPES 193 



BROILED FISH 

Small fish, such as perch, scrod (young cod), etc., are 
excellent broiled. After the fish is cleaned, washed 
out, and wiped, split it lengthwise if it be thick, 
sprinkle on salt and pepper, squeeze over it some 
drops of lemon-juice, dip it in melted butter, and 
broil over clear coals, quickly at first and then very 
slowly, allowing ten minutes for each inch of thick- 
ness. Serve with butter cream. 

To Make Butter Cream. Cream some butter in a cup 
or bowl, season it with salt, Cayenne pepper, lemon- 
juice, and vinegar. A teaspoon of butter is enough 
for an ordinary small fish such as a perch, and to 
season it a speck of cayenne, a speck of salt, and a 
teaspoon of vinegar and lemon- juice (half of each), 
will be good proportions. Spread it on the fish, and 
let it melt and run over it, or serve it separately in 
a little ball on a glass butter-plate. A nice addition 
to the butter is a little finely minced parsley, or 
chopped pickle, such as cucumbers or olives, or the 
three mixed, if they are at hand. 



CREAMED FISH 

To make creamed fish, any white fish which flakes 
easily may be used, disk, cod, and haddock are es- 
pecially recommended. Cook the fish fifteen or twenty 
minutes by gentle boiling. Then remove the flesh 
carefully from the bones, letting it separate into flakes ; 
season it with pepper and salt, and a few drops of 
lemon-juice sprinkled over. For every pint of pre- 
pared fish make a rich cream sauce with four table- 
spoons of butter, two of flour, and a pint of milk in 



194 RECIPES 

which a small slice of onion has been boiled. Pour 
the sauce over the seasoned fish, rolling them together 
gently so that the flakes may not be broken, arrange 
on a platter, sprinkle the top with buttered crumbs, 
and bake in a hot oven from twenty minutes to half 
an hour. A speck of cayenne is a good addition to 
make to the sauce. This is a delicious and wholesome 
dish. The butter is so thoroughly incorporated with 
the flour of the sauce that it becomes one of the few 
very easily digested forms of cooked fat. 



BOILED FISH 

Select any white fish — fresh cod for instance. Pre- 
pare it according to the directions given for cleaning 
fish, put it into a wire vegetable-basket, drop the 
basket into a dish of boiling salted water, and let it 
simmer for from fifteen minutes to three quarters of 
an hour according to the size of the fish (a cod weigh- 
ing three pounds will require cooking a half hour). 
Do not allow it to boil rapidly at any time, or it will 
break. When it is done lift it out of the basket and 
serve it at once with drawn butter made in the follow- 
ing manner: 

Put two tablespoons of butter and one of flour into 
a saucepan ; let them simmer together for two minutes 
(count the time); then add, a little at a time, a pint 
of boiling water or of chicken broth, stirring con- 
stantly. This will give a smooth cream-like sauce 
which will be enough for two pounds of fish. Season 
it with parsley, grated yolks of hard-boiled eggs, a 
few drops of lemon- juice, a bit each of cayenne and 
mustard, and a few drops of onion- juice. 



CUSTARDS, CREAMS, PUDDINGS, AND 
BLANC-MANGE 

SOFT CUSTARD 

(boiled) 

Soft custard is a nutritious dish made of yolk of 
egg and milk. It is frequently used as a sauce for 
puddings, but is very good, eaten by itself, for one 
who is confined to light or liquid diet. 

1 Pint of milk. 
Yolks of two eggs. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 

Put the milk into a saucepan, and set it on the stove 
to boil. Beat together the yolks of the eggs, the salt, 
and the sugar, in a bowl, and when the milk just 
reaches the boiling-point, pour it in slowly, stirring 
until all is mixed. Return it to the saucepan without 
delay, and cook for three minutes, meanwhile stirring 
it slowly. Carefully endeavor not to either overcook 
or undercook the custard, for if it is not cooked enough, 
it will have a raw, unpleasant, "eggy " taste, and if it is 
cooked too much, it will have the appearance of being 
curdled. If there is no unnecessary delay in pouring 
the milk into the egg so that not much of its heat is 
lost, and if it is returned immediately to the fire, 
three minutes' exposure to the heat will usually be 
long enough, but of course the time will vary accord- 
ing to the condition of the fire and the kind of pan 

195 



196 RECIPES 

used. When done, strain it at once into a cool dish, 
and flavor it with a teaspoon of vanilla. Soft custard 
may also be flavored with sherry wine, almond ex- 
tract, cinnamon-bark, caramel, and nutmeg. It should 
be of a smooth and even consistency, and when cold 
as thick as rich cream. 



BAKED CUSTARD 

(IN CUPS) 

1 Pint of milk. 

2 Eggs. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 

$ Square inch of cinnamon-bark. 

Put the cinnamon and milk together in a saucepan, 
and set on the stove to heat. Break the eggs into a 
bowl, add the salt and sugar, and beat them until well 
mixed, but not light. When the milk boils, pour it on 
the beaten egg, stir slowly for a minute to dissolve 
the sugar, and then strain it into custard-cups. Place 
the cups in a deep iron baking-pan, and pour boiling 
water around, until it reaches almost to their tops. 
Bake in a hot oven twenty minutes. 

The blue baking-cups which are small at the bottom 
and widen toward the top are good ones to use. They 
bear the fire well, and are pretty enough to serve. 

By baking the custards in a dish of boiling water, 
the temperature cannot rise higher than 212° Fahr., 
and there is less danger of hardening the albumen in 
the more exposed portions before the middle is cooked 
enough, than if water is not used. The top is sacri- 
ficed — somewhat overcooked — for the sake of the 
pretty brown color which they should always have. 
Custards, when done, should be of a perfectly smooth, 



RECIPES 197 

even, velvety consistence throughout, not curdled or 
wheyey. 

To test them after they have been cooking twenty 
minutes, dip a pointed knife into water, and plunge 
it into the middle of the custard. If it comes out 
clean, the custard is done; if milky, it is not cooked 
enough, and should be put into the oven for five min- 
utes longer. Do not try every one unless the cups are 
of different sizes, and make a small, narrow slit, so that 
their appearance will not be too much injured. This 
mixture may also be baked in a pudding-dish. Baked 
custards may be flavored with a variety of substances, 
among the best of which are grated nutmeg, almond 
extract, vanilla, and caramel. 

To Make Caramel. Boil together one cup of sugar 
and one third of a cup of water until the color is a 
rich reddish brown, then add one cup of water, and 
bottle for use. Two tablespoons of this syrup will be 
required to flavor a pint of custard. 



FRENCH CUSTARD 

Make a custard mixture according to the above rule, 
omitting the cinnamon. Put into the bottom of the 
custard-cups in which it is to be baked, a teaspoon of 
raspberry jam. Then with a tunnel pour the custard 
in slowly. Bake twenty minutes. The jam, if firm, will 
not mix with the custard. It imparts a nice flavor to 
the whole, and is an interesting dish to many, who 
wonder how the jam can be kept from dissolving. 



RENNET CUSTARD OR SLIP 

Put into a glass pudding-dish a pint of milk, a 
tablespoon of sugar, and a teaspoon of rennet. Stir 



198 RECIPES 

to dissolve the sugar, cover it and place it on the 
stove-hearth, or any warm place, to heat sufficiently 
for the rennet to act upon the casein of the milk — 
that is, to about 98° Fahr. As soon as it is " set," or 
becomes solid, remove to a cool place, so that the sep- 
aration of the casein shall not go too far and whey 
appear. When it is cool, serve it in glass dishes. Ren- 
net custard may be flavored with nutmeg grated over 
the surface, or by stirring in with the rennet a tea- 
spoon of vanilla, or of rose-water, or a tablespoon of 
wine. When brandy is added, it is called junket. 

Liquid rennet is an extract of the inner lining of 
the stomach of the calf. It has the power of freeing 
the albuminous part of milk from its solution, — in 
other words, of coagulating it. Rennet custard is not 
of course strictly a custard ; it is also called slip, and 
in Cape Cod it bears the graphic name of " Gap-and- 
swallow." 

EGG CREAM 

2 Eggs. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 

Juice and grated rind of half a lemon. 

Separate the yolks of the eggs from the whites, and 
beat them with the sugar in a bowl until both are 
well mixed. Then put in the lemon- juice and rind, 
and place the bowl in a dish of boiling water on 
the fire. Stir slowly until the mixture begins to 
thicken ; then add the beaten whites of the eggs and 
stir for two minutes, or until the whole resembles 
very thick cream ; then remove it from the fire, pour 
into a small pudding-dish, and set it away to cool. 
Serve in small pretty china cups, or small glass dishes, 
for a mid-afternoon lunch or for tea. 



RECIPES 199 



VELVET CREAM 

\ Box of gelatine. 

\ Cup of cold water. 

\ Cup of sherry wine. 

1 Teaspoon of lemon-juice. 

i Cup of sugar. 

1£ Cups of sweet cream, or 

l| Cups of creamy milk. 

Soak the gelatine in the cold water in a bowl for 
half an hour ; then pour in the wine, and set the bowl 
in a dish of boiling water on the tire. When the 
gelatine is dissolved, put in the lemon-juice and 
sugar, stir for a minute to dissolve the sugar, and 
then strain it through a fine wire strainer into a gran- 
ite or other metal pan. Set the pan in a dish of ice 
and water to cool. As soon as it begins to thicken, 
or is about the consistency of molasses on a warm 
day, turn in the cream and stir regularly and con- 
stantly until it begins to thicken. Before it is quite 
as hard as it will become, turn it into a glass or 
pretty china dish, in which it may be served, and set 
it away in the refrigerator or back in the dish of ice 
and water until perfectly firm. Serve it in small glass 
or china dishes, with sweet cream poured over. This 
cream should be of a perfectly smooth, even consis- 
tency, hence the name " velvet cream." 



COFFEE CREAM 

J Box of gelatine. 
J Cup of cold water. 
J Cup of strong coffee. 



200 RECIPES 

i Cup of sugar. 

1J Cups of sweet cream, or 

li Cups of creamy milk. 

Soak the gelatiue iu the cold water for half an 
hour. Then pour on the coffee, boiling hot, to dis- 
solve it ; add the sugar, stir until it is dissolved, and 
strain the liquid into a granite pan. Set it in iced 
water to cool ; when it has become so, and is begin- 
ning to thicken, or is about the consistency of syrup or 
a little thinner, pour in the cream ; stir regularly and 
evenly for about ten minutes, or until it is thick, but 
not- hard ; then turn it into a glass dish while it is 
still slightly soft, and it will settle into a smooth, even 
mass. It may be returned to the iced water, or put 
into a refrigerator, to stiffen. 

Coffee cream is similar to velvet cream and the pro- 
cess is exactly the same for both. They are delicious 
creams, very nutritious, and to be recommended for 
their excellent nourishing properties and flavors. 

To Make the Coffee. Mix two tablespoons of ground 
fresh Java, or Java and Mocha coffee mixed, with a 
little cold water and raw egg (either white or yolk) in a 
coffee-pot. Stir it to thoroughly mix the egg and coffee. 
Pour in a cup of boiling water, and set it to simmer 
for five minutes. Then move the pot to a less hot 
part of the stove, where the coffee may steep, for ten 
minutes, when it will be ready for use. 



CHOCOLATE CREAM 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 

J Ounce (J square) of Baker's chocolate. 

1 Pint of cream. 

Whites of four eggs. 



RECIPES 201 

Cook the sugar, chocolate, and cream (sweet cream 
or, if that cannot be had, rich milk) together in a 
double boiler until the chocolate is perfectly dis- 
solved. It will require occasional stirring, and should 
be, when done, entirely free from specks or flakes of 
chocolate. Then stir in, pouring slowly, the well- 
beaten whites of the eggs while the cream is still on 
the stove. Cook for three minutes, or until the albu- 
men is coagulated, but not hardened. It should look 
creamy and smooth, not curdled. Turn into a pud- 
ding-dish and cool. 



TAPIOCA CREAM 

J Cup of granulated tapioca. 

J Cup of cold water. 

1 Pint of milk. 

3 Tablespoons of sugar. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

2 Eggs. 

After the tapioca is picked over and washed, put it 
into a double boiler with the cold water, and let it 
stand until the water is absorbed. Then pour in the 
pint of milk, and cook until each grain is transparent 
and soft. It will take an hour. At this point, beat 
the eggs, sugar, and salt together until very light, and 
pour them slowly into the hot pudding, at the same 
time stirring rapidly, so that the two will be perfectly 
mixed. After the egg is in, continue to stir for about 
three minutes, or long enough to cook the egg as it 
is done in soft custard. The pudding should have 
the appearance of cream, as the name indicates, with 
flecks of tapioca all through it. Turn it into a china 
dish. Serve either hot or cold. 



202 RECIPES 



RICE CREAM 



2 Tablespoons of rice. 
2 Cups of milk. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 
2 Eggs. 

Cleanse the rice by washing it several times in cold 
water ; cook it in a double boiler with the milk until 
the grains will mash. Three hours will generally 
be required to do this. Should the milk evaporate, 
restore the amount lost. When the rice is perfectly 
soft, press it through a coarse soup-strainer or col- 
ander into a saucepan, return it to the fixe, and 
while it is heating beat the eggs, sugar, and salt 
together until very light. When the rice boils, pour 
the egg in rather slowly, stirring lightly with a spoon 
for three or four minutes, or until it coagulates and 
the whole is like a thick, soft pudding ; then remove 
from the fire, and pour it into a pretty dish. By 
omitting the yolks and using the whites of the eggs 
only, a delicate white cream is obtained. 



PEACH FOAM 

(DELICIOUS) 

Peel and cut into small pieces three or four choice 
and very ripe peaches (White Heaths are good), so 
that when done there will be a cupful. Put them 
into a bowl, with half a cup of powdered sugar, and 
the white of one egg. Beat with a fork for half an 
hour, when it will be a thick, perfectly smooth, vel- 
vety cream, with a delightful peach flavor, and may 
be eaten ad libitum by an invalid. 



RECIPES 203 



SNOW PUDDING 



J Box of gelatine. 
i Cup of cold water. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 

1 Cup of sugar. 

J Cup of lemon-juice. 
Whites of three eggs. 1 
For the sauce : 

Yolks of two eggs. 

2 Tablespoons of- sugar. 
J Saltspoon of salt. 

1 Pint of milk. 

i Teaspoon of vanilla. 

Divide a box of gelatine into fourths by notching one 
of the upright edges. Cut off one fourth of the box 
for a measure, which can afterward be used as a cover. 
When taking out a fourth, be sure to pack the mea- 
sure as closely as it was packed in the box. Soak the 
gelatine in the cold water for half an hour. Then 
pour on the boiling water, add the sugar and lemon- 
juice, stir for a minute, and strain through a fine wire 
strainer into a granite pan ; place the pan in iced water 
to cool. Meanwhile beat the eggs as light as possible, 
and as soon as the gelatine mixture begins to thicken, 
or is about as thick as honey, turn in the eggs, and 
stir slowly and regularly, with the back of the bowl of 
the spoon against the bottom of the pan, until the egg 
is mixed completely with the gelatine and the whole 
nearly stiff. Just before" it becomes firm turn it into a 
melon-mold, and return it to the iced water to harden. 
It should be perfectly white, literally, like snow. 

1 From Mrs. Lincoln's " Boston Cook Book." 



204 RECIPES 

With the materials for the sauce make a soft cus- 
tard, cool it, and serve with the pudding either in a 
pitcher, or poured around it in an ice-cream dish, or 
other shallow pudding-dish. 



PRINCESS PUDDING 

J Box of gelatine. 

i Cup of cold water, 

f Cup of boiling water. 

1 Cup of sugar. 

£ Cup of white wine (sherry). 

Juice of one lemon. 

Whites of three eggs. 

For the sauce : 

1 Pint of milk. 

Yolks of two eggs: 

3 Tablespoons of sugar. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

1 Teaspoon of rose-water 

The process is exactly the same as for snow pud- 
ding, and it is served in the same manner, with the 
soft custard for a sauce. Ordinary sherry wine may 
be used, although white sherry is better. 



CORN-STARCH PUDDING 

1£ Tablespoons of corn-starch. 
1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

2 Tablespoons of cold water. 
1 Pint of milk. 



RECIPES 205 

Put the milk on the stove to heat. Mix in a sauce- 
pan the corn-starch, sugar, and salt with the cold 
water, and when the milk has just begun to boil pour 
it in, slowly at first, stirring all the while. The corn- 
starch should become thick at once, when it may be 
poured into a clean double boiler and cooked thirty 
minutes. The time should be faithfully kept, as corn- 
starch is an unpalatable and indigestible substance un- 
less thoroughly cooked. See to it that the water in the 
under boiler actually boils during the thirty minutes. 
At the end of that time beat one egg very light, and 
stir it in, pouring slowly, so that it may be mixed 
all through the hot pudding and puff it up. Then 
cook for one minute, turn it into a china pudding- 
dish, or into individual molds, and cool. Serve with 
cream. 

Corn-starch pudding should have a tender consis- 
tency and a sweet and wholesome taste. The diffi- 
culty with many is that they are not thoroughly 
cooked, and are too stiff and hard when cool. When 
you find this to be the case, lessen the amount of 
corn-starch used. The proportion in this recipe may 
always be relied upon, if the starch be good. 

Other similar puddings may be made by substitut- 
ing in the above recipe arrowroot, flour, or farina for 
the corn- starch. 



BARLEY PUDDING 

2 Tablespoons of Robinson's barley flour. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

1 Cup of water (boiling). 

J Cup of rich milk. 

Whites of three eggs. 



206 EECIPES 

Mix the flour, sugar, and salt iu a saucepan with a 
little cold water. When smooth and free from lumps 
pour in the boiling water, slowly stirring meanwhile 
to keep it smooth 5 then set it on the fire to simmer for 
ten minutes, continuing the stirring until it is thick. 
To prevent burning, draw the pan to the side of the 
stove, unless the fire is very slow, for barley is a grain 
which sticks and burns easily. At the end of the ten 
minutes put in the milk, and strain all into a clean 
saucepan, through a coarse strainer, to make the con- 
sistency even. Beat the whites of the eggs until light 
but not stiff, and stir, not beat, them into the pudding, 
making it thoroughly smooth before returning it to 
the fire. Cook for five minutes, stirring and folding 
the pudding lightly until the egg is coagulated. Then 
pour it into a china pudding-dish. Serve cold with 
sweet cream. Farina, in the same proportions, may be 
used, instead of barley flour, to make farina pudding. 



CREAM-OF-RICE PUDDING 

1 Quart of milk. 
J Cup of rice. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 

Put the milk, rice, sugar, and salt together in a 
pudding-dish, stir until the sugar is dissolved, then 
place the dish in a pan of water, and bake in a slow 
oven for three hours, cutting in the crust which forms 
on the top once during the time. Should the pudding 
become dry, pour over it a little more milk, but this 
will -not happen unless the fire is too hot. When 
done it ought to be creamy inside, with the grains of 
rice almost dissolved in the milk. The long exposure 



RECIPES 207 



to heat changes both the sugar and the starch, and 
gives them an agreeable flavor. 



FRUIT TAPIOCA 

Wash half a cup of tapioca, put it into a double 
boiler with a pint of water, and cook until the grains 
are soft and transparent. If granulated tapioca is 
used, one hour is sufficient time. Then add to it half 
a cup of grape or currant jelly, and mix until the 
jelly is dissolved; turn it into a pudding-dish. Serve 
cold, with sugar and cream. Any well-flavored fruit 
jelly may be used instead of the grape or currant. 



TAPIOCA JELLY 

i Cup of tapioca. 

2 Cups of water. 

J Cup of sugar. 

Juice and grated rind of half a lemon. 

J Cup of sherry wine, or 

J Cup of brandy (French). 

Pick over and wash the tapioca. Put it into a 
double boiler with the water, and cook it for one 
hour, or until the grains are transparent and soft. 
Then add to it the sugar, juice and grated rind of 
the lemon, the sherry and the brandy, mixing them 
thoroughly. Press all through a wire strainer into 
a glass pudding-dish, and set it in a cool place to be- 
come a jelly. It should be served cold, and with 
cream. 



208 EECIPES 



ORANGE LAYERS 

4 Oranges. 

3 Bananas. 

1 Cup of sugar. 

$ Cup of water. 

1 Cup of claret wine. 

Peel the oranges, slice them in thin slices, and re- 
move the seeds. Peel and slice the bananas. Arrange 
both in alternate layers in a glass dish. Make a 
syrup of the sugar and water by boiling them to- 
gether,* without stirring, for ten minutes; then add 
the wine, and remove at once from the fire j cool it, 
and pour it over the fruit. In half an hour it will be 
ready to serve. 

It will not do to keep this dish long, as the fruit 
shrinks and loses its freshness. One fourth of an 
inch is the proper thickness for the slices of orange, 
and one sixth or one eighth for the bananas. 



ORANGE BASKETS 

From the end opposite the stem end of an orange cut 
out sections in such a way as to form a basket with 
a handle. 

The body of the basket should be more than half the 
orange. With a knife and spoon cut and scrape out 
all the pulp from the inside. Fill the baskets with 
blocks of orange jelly, or with raspberries, strawber- 
ries, or other fruits. They are pleasing to children, 
and are pretty for luncheon or tea. The edges may 
be scalloped, and diamonds or rounds cut out of the 
sides, if one has time. 



RECIPES 209 



IRISH MOSS BLANC-MANGE 

Irish moss, or carrageen, is a sea moss which grows 
abundantly along the shores of Europe and America. 
After gathering, it is dried and bleached in the sun, 
and then packed for market. It is exceedingly rich 
in an easily digested vegetable jelly, and is also valu- 
able for food because of its mineral constituents. 
To Prepare. 

f Cup of dry moss. 

1 Quart of milk. 

J Cup of sugar. 

Soak the moss for half an hour in warm water, to 
soften it and to loosen the sand which is dried and 
entangled in it. Wash each piece separately under a 
stream of cold water. Its weight (that of the water) 
will carry down the sand. Then put the moss in a 
pudding-bag, and cook it in a double boiler in the 
quart of milk for one hour. At the end of that time 
lift out the bag, squeeze it a little, throw away the 
moss, and put the bag to soak in cold water. Add 
the sugar to the mixture, strain it into molds, and set 
in a cool place to harden. It will form a tender jelly- 
like pudding, which has an agreeable taste, resembling 
the odor of the sea, which many like. Serve it with 
cream, and with or without pink sugar. 1 

This blanc-mange may also be made without sugar 
if it is desirable to have an unsweetened dessert. 



1 Pink sugar may be made by putting a few drops of carmine into a 
cup of powdered sugar, and sifting it several times until the carmine is 
entirely distributed through it. 



210 RECIPES 



PINK BLANC-MANGE 



Make a pudding according to the above rule. Color 
it, just before straining, with three or four drops of 
carmine, barely enough to give a delicate shell pink, 
for if it is very dark it is not attractive. 

Carmine for use in cooking is made by mixing one 
ounce of No. 40 carmine (which may be obtained of a 
druggist) with three ounces of boiling water and one 
ounce of ammonia. It should be bottled, and will keep 
indefinitely. It is useful for coloring ice-cream, cake, 
and puddings. 



SALADS 

Salads are of two classes : the plain salads, consist- 
ing of green herbs or vegetables, such as lettuce, 
endive, water-cress, cucumber, etc., dressed or seasoned 
with salt, pepper, oil and vinegar, or oil and lemon- 
juice; and the so-called meat salads, which consist of 
one or more green vegetables, with an admixture of 
fish, lobster, crab, fowl, or game. A salad of which- 
ever kind should be cool, delicate, and prepared by a 
gentle hand. Ordinary servants do not enough ap- 
preciate the " niceties " to make acceptable salads. 
The lettuce, cress, or whatever green is used, should 
be thoroughly washed, but not crushed, broken, or 
roughly handled, drained in a wire basket, dried in 
a napkin, and then torn with the fingers, not cut. Of 
course, cucumbers, beet-root, olives, etc., are exceptions. 

The dressing for salads, whether simply oil and vine- 
gar, or a mayonnaise, should be mixed with a wooden 
spoon, and an intelligent mind. As for the season- 
ings, the Spanish maxim which reads as follows is a 
good guide : "Be a miser with vinegar, a counselor 
with salt, and a spendthrift with oil." Let the oil be 
of the first quality of genuine olive-oil. In nearly all 
the large cities one may get fine oil by searching for 
it. Once found, there is no longer any difficulty, so 
long as the brand does not deteriorate. 

To vary and flavor the salads of vegetables only, use 

the fine herbs when in season, for instance balm, mint. 

parsley, cress, and sorrel, chopped or minced, and 

scattered through the salad. Unless the vinegar is 

known to be pure cider or wine vinegar, use lemon- 

211 



212 RECIPES 



juice. Theodore Child says: " Lemon-juice is the 
most delicate and deliciously perfumed acid that na- 
ture has given the cook." 



FRENCH DRESSING 

French dressing is a mixture of fine olive-oil, vine- 
gar or lemon-juice, or both, salt, Cayenne pepper, and 
onion- juice. The following proportions will make 
enough for one head of lettuce : 

1 Tablespoon of oil. 
A bit of cayenne. 
J Saltspoon of salt. 
4 Drops of onion-juice. 
1 Teaspoon of lemon-juice. 
1 Teaspoon of vinegar. 

Mix all together well. This dressing may be used 
with lettuce, tomatoes, cold meat, potato salad, and 
to marinate chicken, lobster, and crab when they are 
to be used for salads. 



MAYONNAISE DRESSING 

\ Saltspoon of salt. 

2 Saltspoons of mustard. 

2 Saltspoons of sugar. 

i Saltspoon of cayenne. 

Yolk of one egg. 

% Cup of olive-oil. 

2 Tablespoons of lemon-juice. 

1 Tablespoon of vinegar. 

1 Tablespoon of thick sweet cream. 



RECIPES 213 

These proportions may be multiplied or divided to 
make larger or smaller quantities. Put the first five 
ingredients together in a bowl, and mix them well j 
then add the oil one drop at a time, stirring con- 
stantly with a wooden paddle or spoon "round and 
round," not back and forth. After dropping and 
stirring for ten minutes, the mixture will become stiff 
and difficult to turn. At this point stir in a little of 
the vinegar or lemon-juice. Then drop in more oil, 
and stir until it again becomes stiff. Continue put- 
ting in oil and the acids until all are used, when you 
should have a thick, smooth cream which, when taken 
up on the end of the spoon, will keep its shape and 
not "run." It will take from twenty minutes to half 
an hour to make it. Last stir in the cream. 

Should the dressing " break," or appear as if curdled, 
it may sometimes be restored to smoothness by beating 
with a Dover egg-beater, or by adding more egg and 
stirring for a while without adding oil. If these ex- 
pedients fail, begin all over again, adding the spoiled 
dressing to a new one. However, a mayonnaise 
dressing will not go wrong except in the hands of a 
careless worker. The only points to be observed are 
to put the oil in slowly, and to stir constant!)/ and 
rapidly. The sweet cream is a valuable addition, giv- 
ing the mayonnaise a delicate, satisfying flavor. 



LETTUCE SALAD 

Prepare a head of lettuce by washing each leaf sep- 
arately in a stream of water, tearing off any portion 
that is bruised or brown, and looking carefully for 
little green creatures that may be lodged in the 
creases; they are not easily seen. Then drain the 
lettuce on a fresh towel or napkin, for if the leaves are 



214 RECIPES 

very wet the dressing will not cling to them. Next 
tear it to pieces with the fingers, rejecting the large 
part of the midrib, put it into a deep bowl, pour 
on a French dressing, and toss it with a wooden salad- 
spoon and fork until all the lettuce seems oiled. 
Serve immediately. 

Mayonnaise dressing may be used instead of the 
French dressing in this salad. 

TOMATO SALAD 

Wash in cold water and wipe some fair, ripe toma- 
toes.. Cut them in slices one third of an inch thick. 
Do not peel them. Arrange some clean white lettuce 
leaves on a silver or china platter, with two large 
leaves at either end, their stems toward the middle, 
and two small ones at the sides. Lay on them the 
slices of tomato, with their edges overlapping each 
other. Serve with this salad French dressing. 

CHICKEN SALAD 

Prepare a nice chicken (one not too young) by boil- 
ing it until tender. Then set it away in its own 
broth to cool. (It is a good plan to boil the chicken the 
day before it is intended for use.) Meanwhile make 
a mayonnaise dressing. When the chicken has be- 
come cold, take it from the broth, and cut it as nearly 
as possible into half -inch cubes, rejecting all skin, 
tendons, cords, and bones. Season it with salt and 
pepper. Tear into small pieces with the fingers some 
tender, well-cleaned lettuce, and then mix equal quan- 
tities of chicken and lettuce with a part of the dress- 
ing; arrange it in a shallow salad-bowl, and spread 
the remainder of the mayonnaise over the top. The 



RECIPES 215 

yolk of egg hard-boiled and pressed through a wire 
strainer with the back of a spoon, so that it falls in 
littls crinkled pieces all over the top, makes a pretty 
garnish. Celery tops, the tiny inside leaves of let- 
tuce, and parsley may be used singly or together for 
a border. 

Chicken salad is usually made with celery instead 
of lettuce, but the latter is better for an invalid, 
although tender, delicate celery may be used. Serve 
a very small quantity, for chicken salad is a con- 
centrated food, and should not be eaten in large 
amounts by either the convalescent or the well. The 
chicken, lettuce, and dressing may all be prepared 
beforehand, but on no account should they be mixed 
together until just before serving. 



POTATO SALAD 

For this salad fresh boiled potatoes, red sugar-beets, 
and French dressing are needed. The potatoes and 
beets should be cooked in salted water purposely for 
the salad, and allowed to become just cool. Cold 
potatoes left over from the last meal may be used, but 
they are not nice. When the potatoes are cool, cut 
them into thin slices, season with a little more salt 
and a bit of white pepper ; cut the beets also in thin 
slices, and mix the two in the proportions of one 
third beets to two thirds potatoes, with the dressing, 
or arrange them in alternate layers in a salad-bowl, 
with the dressing poured over each layer as it is made. 

A more dainty way, and one which a person of cul- 
tivated taste will appreciate (as it really makes a 
perceptible difference in the flavor of the salad), is to 
mix the lemon- juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper together 
without the oil, and pour it over the different layers 



216 EECIPES 

as they are laid, and then add the oil by itself. The 
acids penetrate and season the vegetables, and the oil 
is left on the outside of each piece. 



POTATO SALAD WITH OLIVES 

Make a potato salad according to the foregoing 
rule, except substitute chopped olives for the beets, in 
the proportion of one eighth olives by measure to 
seven eighths potato. 



CELERY SALAD 

" One of the finest salads to be eaten, either alone or 
with game, especially partridges or wild duck, is a 
mixture of celery, beet-root, and corn-salad. Water- 
cresses will make a poor substitute when broken into 
small tufts. 

" The beets are cut into slices one sixteenth of an 
inch thick; the celery, which must be young and 
tender and thoroughly white, should be cut into 
pieces an inch long, and then sliced lengthwise into 
two or three pieces. (N. B. — Select only the tender 
inside branches of celery.) This salad will require 
plenty of oil, and more acid than a lettuce salad, 
because of the sweetness and absorbent nature of 
the beet-root. The general seasoning, too, must be 
rather high, because the flavors of the celery and the 
beet are pronounced." (" Delicate Feasting," by Theo- 
dore Child.) 

There are many kinds of salads, but they are all 
based upon the principles stated in these rules. Green 
herbs or vegetables treated with French or mayon- 
naise dressing, either by themselves or with meats, 
form the foundations of all salads. 



ICE-CREAM, SHERBETS, AND ICES 

For patients suffering with fevers, and for use in 
very warm weather, good ice-cream and sherbet are 
most acceptable. They should, however, be used with 
great care, particularly if the illness be due to dis- 
turbance of digestion, for they lower the temperature 
of the stomach and often cause such disorders as lead 
to severe illness. Even if this does not happen, they, 
in order to be raised to a temperature at which diges- 
tion will take place, absorb heat from the body, and a 
person reduced by illness cannot afford to needlessly 
part with any form of energy. 

Sherbet in its literal sense means a cool drink. It 
is of oriental origin, but in this country it has come 
to mean a frozen mixture of fruit, or fruit- juice, 
water and sugar. There is a distinction made, how- 
ever, between water-ice and sherbet. Sherbet has, in 
addition to the fruit- juice aud water, either sugar- 
syrup, white of egg y or gelatine, to give it sufficient 
viscousness to entangle and hold air when beaten in a 
freezer, so that sherbets (unless colored by the fruit 
used) will be white and opaque like snow. Water-ices, 
on the contrary, are made without the white of egg, 
syrup, or gelatine, do not entangle air, and are trans- 
lucent and what might be called "watery." Both 
are delicious when made with fresh, ripe fruit, and 
both may be enriched by the addition of sweet cream 
if desired. 

Freezers. Of the various kinds of freezers perhaps 
the " Improved White Mountain Freezer" is, everv- 

217 



218 EECIPES 

thing considered, as good as any. It is strong and 
freezes quickly when the salt and ice are properly pro- 
portioned. 

It is well to stndy the gearing before attempting 
to nse a freezer. The different parts should be 
taken apart and put together until it is understood 
how the machine works. See that the paddles in 
the can do not interfere with each other, and that 
the crank turns easily. Then put all together again, 
fasten down the crauk-bar across the top of the can, 
and have everything in readiness before packing the 
freezer with salt and ice. The object in using the salt 
is to get a greater degree of cold than could be ob- 
tained with the ice alone. The affinity of salt for 
water is very great — so great, that it will break down 
the structure of ice in its eagerness for it. Heat is 
involved in this process of melting, and will be drawn 
from surrounding objects, from the can, the bucket, 
the cream, and even the ice itself. The more rapid 
the union of salt and ice, the more heat is absorbed, 
consequently the greater is the degree of cold and the 
quicker the mixture to be frozen will become solid. 

Water is converted into steam by a certain amount 
of heat. Ice is transformed into water by the same 
agency, and in the case of the ice-cream freezer heat 
is drawn from whatever comes in contact with the 
ice that is warmer than itself. If the melting of the 
ice can be hastened in any way, the abstraction of 
heat will be correspondingly greater; hence the use 
of salt, which is so eager for water that it takes it 
even in the form of ice. Now it will be easily seen 
that if the ice is in small pieces, and there is the 
proper amount of salt for each piece, union between 
the two will be immediate, the amount of heat used 
will be very great, consequently the degree of cold 
will be great. Cold is only a less degree of heat. 



RECIPES 219 

Ordinary liquid mixtures that contain a large per- 
centage of water become solid when reduced to a 
temperature of 32° Fahr. 

To Pack an Ice-Cream Freezer. Break a quantity of 
ice into small pieces by pounding it in an ice-bag 
(a bag made of canvas or very strong cloth) with a 
wooden mallet. The ice should be about as fine as 
small rock-salt. Put into the bucket, around the tin 
can which is to hold the cream, alternate layers of 
the pounded ice and salt in the proportions of two 
thirds ice to one third salt (a quart cup may be used 
for measuring). Should it happen that you have 
u coarse-fine " salt, put all the ice into the freezer first, 
and then the salt on top of it, as it will quickly work 
down to the bottom. When the packing is complete 
unfasten the cross-bar and lift off the cover of the 
can carefully, so that no salt shall get inside ; then 
put in the mixture to be frozen, replace the cover, 
and fasten the bar. Let it stand till the mixture is 
thoroughly chilled, then turn steadily but not very 
fast for about ten minutes, or until the turning be- 
comes difficult ; that is an indication that the contents 
of the can are freezing. Continue turning for a few 
minutes longer, to give the cream a fine and even con- 
sistency; then take out the paddle, drain off the water 
through the hole in the side of the bucket, fill in all 
about the can with coarse ice, and cover it with a thick 
wet cloth or towel. Let it stand for half an hour to 
become firm, when it is ready to serve. If it is desira- 
ble to keep the ice-cream for a length of time, it may 
be done by packing the freezer closely with ice and 
salt, and covering it with wet cloths. Or, the ice- 
cream may be taken from the can, packed in molds of 
fanciful shapes, sealed at the edges with melted tallow, 
and repacked in ice and salt. 



220 EECIPES 



PHILADELPHIA ICE-CREAM 

The so-called Philadelphia ice-cream is pure, sweet 
cream, sweetened with sugar, and flavored. For a 
small quantity use the following: 

f Cup of sugar. 

1 Teaspoon of vanilla. 

1 Tablespoon of brandy. 

1 pint of scalded sweet cream. 

Mix and freeze. The whites of two eggs beaten 
stiff is a valuable addition to this cream. 



ROYAL ICE-CREAM 

1 Tablespoon of flour. 
1£ Cups of sugar. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 

1 Pint of milk. 

2 Eggs. 

1 Pint of sweet cream. 
1 Tablespoon of vanilla. 
£ Teaspoon of almond. 
i Cup of sherry wine, or 
i Cup of brandy. 

Heat the milk until it boils j meanwhile mix the 
flour, sugar, and salt in a little cold water, and when 
the milk reaches the boiling-point pour it in ; stir it 
for a minute over the fire in a saucepan, and then 
turn it into a double boiler and cook it for twenty 
minutes. At the end of this time beat the eggs very 
light, and pour them into the boiling mixture slowly, 



RECIPES 221 

stirring it rapidly; continue stirring, after all the 
egg is in, for from one to two minutes ; then strain 
the mixture into a dish and set it aside to cool. Last, 
add the cream and flavorings, and freeze. This makes 
a rich and delicious cream. It may be colored with 
carmine a pretty pink, or with spinach a delicate 
green. 

ICE-CREAM WITH AN IMPROVISED FREEZER 

Make the Philadelphia ice-cream mixture, or half 
of it, dividing each ingredient exactly. Put it into a 
small tin can (the Dutch cocoa-cans are convenient) 
with a closely fitting cover. Place it in the middle of 
a deep dish, and surround it with alternate layers of 
ice and salt, in the same manner as for ordinary 
freezing, and cover it closely ; then lay wet cloths on 
the top and set it in a cool place. It will become solid 
in from one to two hours, according to the amount of 
mixture to be frozen. It is well to cut in the thick 
layer on the sides of the can once or twice during the 
freezing. If the cream which you have to use is thick 
enough to whip, do so ; the result, when frozen, will be 
a very dainty dish. 

This is a convenient way of making a little ice-cream 
for one person. 

FROZEN CUSTARD 

1 Pint of milk. 
1 Saltspoon of salt. 
1J Cups of sugar. 
Yolks of three eggs. 
1 Pint of milk or cream. 

1 Teaspoon of rose-water. 

2 Tablespoons of wine or brandy. 



222 RECIPES 



Make a soft custard with the first four ingredients, 
according to the rule on page 195. When done, strain 
it into a granite-ware pan and let it cool. Then add 
the flavoring and the remaining pint of milk or cream, 
and freeze. 



LEMON SHERBET WITH GELATINE 

1 Tablespoon of gelatine. 
1 Pint of boiling water. 
1 Cup of sugar. 
■J Cup of lemon-juice. 
1 Tablespoon of brandy. 

Soak the gelatine (phosphated or any good kind) in 
a little cold water for half an hour. Then pour over 
it the boiling water, stirring until the gelatine is dis- 
solved ; add the sugar, lemon-juice, and brandy, and 
strain all through a fine wire strainer. Freeze. 

There are various kinds of gelatine in market, not 
differing much from each other except, perhaps, in 
the degree of refining. For sherbets and water-ices 
select. that having a delicate taste with no suspicion 
of " fishy" flavor. The phosphated gelatine should 
not be used except when a slight acidity will do no 
harm. Avoid it for all dishes made with cream or 
milk, as it will curdle them. The directions on the 
packages advise neutralizing the acid with soda ; but, 
as there is no means of determining the amount of 
acid in a given quantity, it is not a process that rec- 
ommends itself to an intelligent person. 

Phosphated gelatine may, however, be used in 
sherbets even when milk or cream forms a part of 
them, for when it is added to a slightly acid mixture 
which has a low temperature, or is partially frozen, 
curdling does not take place. 



RECIPES 223 



LEMON SHERBET WITH SUGAR SYRUP 

1 Pint of boiling water. 

1 Cup of sugar. 

i Cup of lemon- juice. 

Boil the water and sugar together without stirring 
for twenty minutes. You will thus obtain a thin 
sugar syrup, which, however, has enough viscousness 
to entangle and hold air when beaten. As soon as it 
is cool, add the lemon-juice, strain, and freeze it. This 
makes a snow-white sherbet of very delicate flavor. 
Lemon sherbet may also be made with water, sugar, 
lemon-juice, and the whites of eggs well beaten, 
instead of with gelatine or syrup. 



ORANGE SHERBET 

1 Tablespoon of gelatine. 
1 Cup of boiling water. 
1 Cup of sugar. 

1 Cup of orange- juice. 
Juice of one lemon. 

2 Tablespoons of brandy. 

Soak the gelatine in just enough cold water to 
moisten it, for half an hour. Then pour over it the 
cup of boiling water, and put in the other ingredients 
in the order in which they are written; when the 
sugar is dissolved, strain all through a fine wire 
strainer, and freeze it. 

To get Orange-juice. Peel the oranges, cut them in 
small pieces, quarters or eighths, put them into a 
jelly-bag or napkin, and press out the juice with the 



224: EECIPES 



hand. By this means the oil of the rind, which has 
a disagreeable flavor, is excluded. 



APRICOT ICE 

1 Quart of apricots. 

1 Quart of water. 

£ Quart of sugar. 

3 Tablespoons of brandy. 

Either fresh or canned apricots may be used for 
this ice. If fresh ones are chosen, wash and wipe 
them carefully, cut them into small pieces, mash them 
with a potato-masher until broken and soft, and add 
the water, sugar, and brandy; then freeze. The 
treatment is the same if canned fruit be used. This 
ice may be made without the brandy, but it is a valu- 
able addition, especially for the sick. 

Peaches, strawberries, raspberries, pineapple, and 
in fact any soft, well-flavored fruit may be made into 
water-ice by following exactly the above rule, except, 
of course, substituting the different kinds of fruits for 
the apricots, and possibly varying the sugar. If pine- 
apple is selected, it should be chopped quite fine, and 
quickly, so that the knife will not discolor it. Peaches 
should be pared, and strawberries and raspberries 
carefully washed. All of these ices are delicious, and 
most wholesome and grateful in very warm weather, 
or for feverish conditions when fruit is allowed. If 
there is a question about seeds, as might be the case 
in using strawberries, strain the fruit through a coarse 
wire strainer after it is mashed ; it is advisable to do 
this always in making strawberry, raspberry, or pine- 
apple ice. 



COOKED FBUITS 

BAKED TART APPLES 

Select fair, sound, tart apples. Wash and wipe 
them, and cut out the cores with an apple-corer, being 
careful to remove everything that is not clear pulp. 
Sometimes the tough husk which surrounds the seeds 
extends farther than the instrument will reach with 
once cutting; this can be detected by looking into 
the apple, and removing with the point of the corer 
anything that remains. If there are dark blotches 
or battered places on the outside of the apple, cut 
them off. Everything of that kind is valueless as 
food, and injures the flavor of that which is good. 

When they are prepared place the apples in an 
earthen baking dish (granite-ware will do), put a 
teaspoon of sugar and half an inch of dried lemon- 
peel, or fresh peel cut very thin, into each hole, pour 
in boiling water until it is one-fourth of an inch deep, 
and bake in a moderately hot oven ; when the skins 
begin to shrink and the apples are perfectly soft all 
the way through, they are done; then take them from 
the oven, arrange them in a glass dish, and pour 
around them the syrupy juice that is left. 

The time for baking varies, according to the species 
of apple, from half an hour to two hours. They should 
be basted once or twice during the time with the water 
which is around them. It will nearly all evaporate 
while they are baking. If the apples are Baldwins, or 
Greenings, or any others of fine flavor, the lemon-peel 

225 



226 RECIPES 



niay be omitted. Stick cinnamon may be used instead 
of lemon-peel for apples which are not quite sour. 



BAKED SWEET APPLES 

Prepare sweet apples according to the foregoing 
rule, except use a fourth of a square inch of cinnamon 
instead of the lemon-peel, and half a teaspoon of sugar 
for each apple. Sweet apples require two or three 
hours' baking. They should be cooked until perfectly 
soft, and until the juice which oozes out becomes 
gelatinous. Serve cold with sweet cream. Cooked 
apples are an excellent addition to a diet. They con- 
tain acids and salts of great value. 



STEWED APPLES 

Wash, pare, and quarter three fine tart apples. Put 
them into a saucepan with a cup of water and two 
tablespoons of sugar, and stew gently until they are 
soft, but not broken. Each piece should be whole, 
but soft and tender. A tablespoon of lemon- juice put 
in just before they are taken from the fire is a good 
addition to make if the apples are poor in flavor; or, 
lemon-peel may be used, and also cinnamon and cloves. 



APPLE COMPOTE 

Wash and wipe some fair, well-flavored apples (not 
sweet). Core them with an apple-corer (not a knife), 
being careful not to leave in any of the hulls, which 
sometimes penetrate far into the fruit; pare them 
evenly, so that they will be smooth and of good shape. 
Then boil them gently, in water enough to just reach 



RECIPES 227 

their tops, with a square inch or two of thin lemon- 
peel, and a teaspoon of sugar for each apple, until 
they are soft, but not broken, watching them carefully 
toward the last part of the cooking, lest they go to 
pieces. When done lift them out into a glass dish, 
reduce the water by further boiling until it is some- 
what syrupy, and set it aside to cool. Fill the holes 
with apple, grape, or any bright-colored jelly, and 
when the syrup is cold pour it over and around the 
apples. 

STEWED PRUNES 

1 Pint of prunes. 
1J Pints of water. 
J Cup of sugar. 

2 Tablespoons of lemon-juice. 

Soak the prunes in warm water for fifteen min- 
utes, to soften the dust and dirt on the outside. Then 
wash them carefully with the fingers, rejecting those 
that feel granular (they are worm-eaten) ; stew them 
gently in the sugar and water in a covered saucepan 
for two hours. Just before taking them from the fire 
put in the lemon-juice. They should be plump, soft, 
and tender to the stone. As the water evaporates 
the amount should be restored, so that there will be 
as much at the end as at the beginning of the cook- 
ing. French prunes may not require quite so long 
time for cooking as most ordinary kinds. 



CRANBERRY SAUCE AND JELLY 

Pick out the soft and decayed ones from a quantity 
of Cape cranberries; measure a pint, and put with 



228 RECIPES 

it half the bulk of sugar, and one fourth the bulk of 
water. Stew the berries ten minutes without stir- 
ring, counting the time from the moment when they 
are actually bubbling. Done in this way, the skins 
will be tender, and the juice on cooling will form a 
delicate jelly. Or, the fruit may be pressed through 
a soup-strainer and the whole made into jelly. 



GRAPE SAUCE 

Take any small quantity of grapes. Wash them by 
dipping each bunch several times in water, unless you 
know that they have been gathered and handled by 
clean hands. Separate the skins from the pulps by 
squeezing each grape between the fingers and thumb. 
Cook the pulps about five minutes, or until soft 
and broken. Cook the skins for the same length of 
time in a separate saucepan, then press the pulps 
through a strainer into them, until there is nothing 
left but the seeds. Measure the mixture, and for 
each measure, pint or cup, as the case may be, add 
half a measure of sugar, and simmer for five minutes. 
Many invalids who cannot eat grapes uncooked, on 
account of the seeds, may take them stewed in this 
way. More or less than the above amount of sugar 
may be used, according to the requirements of the 
individual. 

GRAPE JELLY 

Separate the pulps from the skins of a quantity of 
washed grapes. Cook each separately for a few min- 
utes, and slowly, so as not to evaporate the juice. 
Press the pulps through a soup-strainer, mashing 
them if they are not broken, until there is nothing 



EECIPES 229 

left but the seeds ; strain into this the juice from the 
skins, mashing and squeezing out all that is possible. 
Measure the mixture, and for every cup add a cup of 
sugar. Put all into a granite- ware saucepan and boil 
slowly for ten or twelve minutes. 

The time required for cooking depends upon the 
condition of the grapes. If they are very ripe, and 
it is late in the season, ten minutes is sufficient time 
to obtain a fine, delicate jelly; but if it is early in the 
autumn, and the fruit has not been as thoroughly 
changed by nature as late in the season, twelve or 
fifteen minutes will be required to obtain the same 
result. Even less than ten minutes' cooking will 
sometimes cause the pectin of the fruit to dissolve, 
which, on cooling, forms the jelly. The time required 
will always be variable, according to the condition 
of the fruit, so it is well to ascertain by experiment 
what number of minutes gives the desired result. 

Another and important point to notice in making 
fruit jellies is, that if the fruit be cooked longer than 
is necessary to dissolve the jelly-forming substance, 
that is the pectin, the natural flavor of the fruit is 
more or less injured; consequently, if grapes which 
require only ten minutes' boiling are boiled for fif- 
teen, the flavor is inferior to what it would be if they 
were exposed for the lesser time. 

It is impossible to give a rule which shall at all 
times apply to the making of fruit jellies, on account 
of the always variable condition of the fruit. But 
in general, grapes, cranberries, currants, and similar 
fruits require a short time, while apples, crab-apples, 
lemons, and oranges will take from one and a half to 
three hours. One is therefore obliged to test the jelly 
at intervals by taking out a little on a saucer to cool. 
If it becomes firm quickly, the mixture is cooked 
enough ; if not, one may get an idea, from the con- 

16 



230 RECIPES 

sistency which it has, what further cooking will be 
necessary. 

APPLE JELLY 

Wash and wipe good tart apples. Cat them in 
quarters or, better, eighths, but do not pare them. 
Stew them in half their bulk of water, — that is, if 
you have four quarts of cut apples, put in two quarts 
of water, — until the skins as well as the pulp are 
perfectly soft. No definite time can be given, because 
that depends upon the kind and ripeness of the fruit. 
When done, turn them into a jelly-bag and drain 
until the juice is all out. Measure it, and for each cup 
add a cup of sugar, one clove, and one square inch of 
thin lemon-peel. Simmer gently for half an hour, 
then test it, to see how near the jellying-point it is, 
by taking out a little into a cool saucer. With some 
kinds of apples it will be done in that time, with 
others it will take an hour or more longer. When a 
little becomes firm on cooling, remove the whole im- 
mediately from the fire, skim it, and strain it into 
jars or tumblers which have been thoroughly washed 
in soap and water, and have been standing in boiling 
water for some minutes. 

When the jelly is cool, pour over the surface a thin 
coating of melted paraffin, let it harden, then pour 
in another ; for, as the first hardens, it may crack or 
shrink from the sides and leave spaces where fer- 
ments may enter j in other words, the jars need to be 
made air-tight — not that the air does mischief, but be- 
cause it contains the organisms which, on entering the 
jelly, cause by their growth the various fermentative 
changes known to occur in fruits. The object then 
will be to exclude all micro-organisms. 

There are other ways of sealing jelly than by the 



EECIPES 231 

use of paraffin, as, for instance, with paper soaked in 
alcohol, or coated with oil ; but paraffin, if properly 
used, is a sure, easy, and economical means. 

A wad of sterilized cotton batting, packed into the 
mouth of the jar or tumbler, like a stopper, is some- 
times employed, but it is not as effectual as the 
paraffin ; for that, being poured in hot, sterilizes the 
surface of the jelly, thus killing any organisms that 
may have lodged upon it during the cooling. Organ- 
isms cannot go through batting ; but, though it may 
be properly sterilized, it cannot be packed over the 
jelly until it has become firm, and during the time 
ferments may have settled upon it. Paraffin is a most 
satisfactory means of preserving jelly, and the only 
precaution necessary in using it is to put on two lay- 
ers, the second one two or three hours after the first, 
or when all contraction has ceased. 



BEEAD 

The two most practicable methods of making bread 
are with yeast, and with cream of tartar and bicar- 
bonate of soda. 

Yeast is a micro-organism — an exceedingly mi- 
nute form of plant life — which by its growth pro- 
duces carbonic acid and alcohol. When this growth 
takes place in a mass of flour dough, the carbonic 
acid generated, in its effort to escape, puffs it up, but, 
owing to the viscous nature of the gluten, it is en- 
tangled and held within. Each little bubble of gas 
occupies a certain space. When the bread is baked, 
the walls around these spaces harden in the heat, and 
thus we get the porous loaf. 

Barley, rye, and some other grains would be very 
useful for bread if it were not that they lack suffi- 
cient gluten to entangle enough carbonic acid to 
render bread made from them light. 

Good bread cannot be made without good flour. 
There are two kinds usually to be found in market, 
namely bread flour, and pastry flour. The former is 
prepared in such a way that it contains more gluten 
than the latter. In making Pastry, or St. Louis flour, 
as it is sometimes called, the grain is crushed in such 
a manner that the starch, being most easily broken, 
becomes finer than the gluten, and in the process of 
bolting some of the latter is lost. For pastry and 
cake this kind is best. Lacking gluten, bread made 

232 



EECIPES 233 

from it is more tender, whiter, but less nutritious 
than that made from so-called bread flour. 

New Process, or bread flour may be distinguished 
by the " feel," which is slightly granular rather than 
powdery, by its yellow color, and by the fact that it 
does not u cake n when squeezed in the hand ; while 
St. Louis is white, powdery, and will "cake." 

The best method to pursue in buying flour is, first, 
to find a good dealer, upon whose advice you may 
rely. Next, take a sample of the flour recommended 
and, with a recipe which you have proved to be cor- 
rect, try some; if the first loaf of bread is not satis- 
factory, try another, and then another, until you are 
confident that the fault lies in the flour, and not in 
the method of making. Finally, having found a 
brand of flour from which you can make yellow-white 
instead of snow-white bread, which has a nutty, sweet 
flavor, which in mixing absorbs much liquid, and 
does not "run" after you think you have got it stiff 
enough, and which feels puffy and elastic to the hand 
after molding, keep it ; it is probably good. 

Often the same flour is sold in different sections 
of the country under different names, so that it is 
impossible to recommend any special brand. Each 
buyer must ascertain for herself which brands in her 
locality are best. It is just as easy to have good 
bread as poor. It only requires a little care and a 
little intelligence on the part of the housekeeper. 

Having found a brand of good flour, next give your 
attention to yeast. In these days, when excellent 
compressed yeasts may be found in all markets, it is 
well to use them, bearing in mind that they are com- 
pressed, and that a very small quantity contains a 
great many yeast cells, and will raise bread as well, if 
not better, than a large amount. 

Home-made liquid yeast is exceedingly easy to pre- 



234 EECIPES 

pare. It simply requires a mixture of water and 
some material in which, the plant cells will rapidly 
grow. Grated raw potato, cooked by pouring on 
boiling water, flour, and sugar form an excellent 
food for their propagation. A recipe for yeast will 
be given later. 

Now we have come to the consideration of what 
will take place when the two, flour and yeast, are made 
into dough. According to some accounts of the sub- 
ject, the yeast begins to act first upon the starch, con- 
verting it into sugar (glucose C 6 Hi 2 6 ). While this 
is taking place there is no apparent change, for no- 
thing else is formed except the glucose, or sugar. 
Then this sugar is changed into alcohol and car- 
bonic acid ; the latter, owing to its diffusive nature, 
endeavors to escape, but becomes entangled in the 
viscous mass and swells it to several times its orig- 
inal bulk. 

This has been the accepted explanation j it is now, 
however, believed not to be correct. It is thought, 
and I believe demonstrated, that the yeast plant 
lives upon sugar j that it has not the power to act di- 
rectly upon starch, but that it is capable of producing 
a substance which acts upon starch to convert it 
into sugar. 

The production of the carbonic acid is the end of 
desirable chemical change, and when it has been 
carried to a sufficient degree to fill the dough with 
bubbles, it should be stopped. 

Kneading bread is for the purpose of distributing 
the gas and breaking up the large bubbles into small 
ones, to give the loaf a fine grain. One will imme- 
diately see that kneading before the bread is raised 
is a more or less useless task. Kneading is a process 
which should be done gently, by handling the dough 
with great tenderness ; for if it is pressed hard against 



EECIPES 235 

the molding-board, the bubbles will be worked out 
through the surface, and the loaf consequently less 
porous than if all the gas is kept in it. 

The best temperature for the raising of bread (in 
other words, for the growing of yeast) during the first 
part of the process is from 70° to 75° Fahr. It may 
touch 80° without harm, but 90° is the limit. Above 
that acetic fermentation is liable to occur, and the 
bread becomes sour. When the bread is made into 
loaves, it may be placed in a very warm temperature, 
to rise quickly if it is intended for immediate baking. 
Besides killing the yeast, the object sought in baking- 
is to form a sheath of cooked dough all over the out- 
side, for a skeleton or support for the inside mass 
while it is cooking. Baking also expands the carbonic 
acid, and volatilizes the alcohol. The latter is lost. 

A good temperature in which to begin the baking 
of bread is 400° Fahr. This may gradually decrease 
to not lower than 250°, and the time, for a good-sized 
brick loaf, is one hour. If it is a large loaf, increase 
the time by a quarter or a half hour. 

" The expansion of water or ice into 1700 times its 
volume of steam, is sometimes taken advantage of in 
making snow bread, water gems, etc. It plays a part 
in the lightening of pastry and crackers. Air at 70° 
Fahr. expands to about twice its volume at the tem- 
perature of a hot oven, so that if air is entangled in 
a mass of dough it gives a certain lightness when the 
whole is baked. This is the cause of the sponginess 
of cakes made with eggs. The viscous albumen 
catches the air and holds it." 1 

There are other means of obtaining carbonic acid 
to lighten bread, besides by the growing of yeast. 
The most convenient, perhaps the most valuable, 
method is by causing cream of tartar and bicarbon- 

l Mrs. Richards. 



236 EECIPES 

ate of soda to unite chemically. (The products of 
the union are carbonic acid and Rochelle salts.) The 
advantage of using these over everything else yet 
tried is, that they do not unite when brought in con- 
tact except in the presence of water and a certain 
degree of heat. Rochelle salts, taken in such minute 
quantities as it occurs in bread made in this way, is 
not harmful. 

Cream of tartar bread, if perfectly made, is a whole- 
some and nutritious bread; none of the constituents 
of the flour are lost, as when yeast is used. 1 

The difficulty of obtaining good cream of tartar is 
very great. It is said to be more extensively adulter- 
ated than any other substance used for food. More- 
over, in the practice of bread-making the cream of 
tartar and soda are generally mixed in the propor- 
tion of two to one — that is, two teaspoons of cream of 
tartar to every teaspoon of soda; but this is not the 
exact proportion in which they neutralize each other, 
so that under ordinary circumstances there is an ex- 
cess of soda in the bread. 

To be exact they should always be combined by 
weight, as is done in making baking-powders, the pro- 
portion being 84 parts of soda to 188 of cream of 
tartar, or, reducing to lower terms, as 21 to 47 — a little 
less than half as much soda as cream of tartar. For 
practical use in cooking scales are seldom or very 
rarely employed for the purpose of weighing these 
materials, but the proportions are roughly approxi- 
mated with teaspoons, and a fairly accurate result for 
bread-making may be obtained most easily by mea- 
suring a teaspoon of each in exactly the same manner, 
and then taking off a little from the soda. 

1 A portion of the starch and sugar is consumed to feed the growing 
yeast. It has been estimated that about \ of a barrel of flour is lost in 
raising bread — that is, that amount is consumed by the yeast used. 



EECIPES 237 

With good materials, care in measuring them, and 
a hot oven to set the bread before the gas escapes, 
cream of tartar biscuits are both wholesome and 
palatable. 

LIQUID YEAST 

(home-made with grated potato) 

1 Medium-sized potato. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

1 Tablespoon of flour. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

1J Pints of boiling water. 

i of a two-cent cake of Fleischmann's yeast. 

First see that there is a supply of boiling water. 
Then put the salt, sugar, and flour together in a 
mixing-bowl. Wash and peel the potato, and grate 
it quickly into the bowl, covering it now and then 
with the flour to prevent discoloring. As soon as the 
potato is all grated, pour in the boiling water and 
stir. It will form into a somewhat thick paste at 
once. Set it aside to cool. Then soften the yeast in 
a little cold water, add it, and set the mixture to rise 
in a temperature of 70° to 80° Fahr. 

In a short time bubbles will begin to appear j these 
are carbonic acid, showing that the alcoholic stage of 
the fermentation has begun. In six or eight hours 
the whole will be filled with yeast cells, which have 
grown in the nutrient liquid. It is then ready for 
use. It should be bottled in wide-mouthed glass or 
earthen jars, and kept in a cool place. It will remain 
good for two weeks. At the end of that time make a 
fresh supply. 

Yeast is an organism — a microscopic form of plant 
life — which grows by a species of budding with great 
rapidity when it finds lodgment in material suitable 



238 RECIPES 



for its food. The compressed yeast is like seed, which? 
when put into a fruitful soil, grows with great luxu- 



riance. 



WATER BREAD 

1 Pint of boiling water. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

1 Tablespoon of butter. 

| Cup of liquid yeast, or 

\ of a two-cent cake of compressed yeast. 

Enough sifted flour to make a stiff dough. 

Put the sugar, salt, and butter with the boiling 
water into a mixing-bowl or bread-pan. Stir until 
the sugar is dissolved and the water lukewarm, then 
add the yeast (if compressed, it should be softened in 
a little water). Last, stir in the flour until a dough 
stiff enough to mold easily is made. Mold it for a 
minute or two to give it shape and to more thoroughly 
mix the ingredients, and then set it to rise in a room 
warm enough to be comfortable to live in — that is, 
having a temperature of 70° Fahr. It should remain 
in this temperature for eight hours. Cover it closely, 
that the top may not dry. 

It is often convenient to let bread rise over night. 
There is no objection to this, provided the bread is 
mixed late in the evening, and baked early the next 
morning. Care must be taken, however, that the 
room in which it is left is warm enough to insure ris- 
ing in the time given. On the other hand, if allowed 
to rise too long, or at too high a temperature, the fer- 
mentation is carried so far that an acid is produced, 
and the dough becomes sour. 



EECIPES 239 

Eight hours at 70° Fahr. is a good rule to keep in 
mind. During the time of raising the dough should 
double itself in bulk. If this does not happen, or it 
does not appear to have risen at all, either the yeast 
was not good, or the temperature was too low. 

When the bread has risen sufficiently, cut it down, 
and knead it for five minutes on a bread-board, to 
distribute the gas and break the large bubbles, so that 
the bread may have an even grain; then shape it into 
a loaf, put it into an oiled baking-pan, and let it rise 
quickly in a warm place, until it again doubles itself. 
The amount of dough indicated in the rule will make 
one large loaf, or a medium-sized loaf and some bis- 
cuit. Multiply the rule by two if you want two loaves. 
Bake the bread in an oven which is hot at first, but 
gradually decreases in temperature, for an hour and 
a quarter. If you have an oven thermometer use it. 1 



MILK BREAD 

1 Pint of scalded milk. 
1 Tablespoon of sugar. 
1 Teaspoon of salt. 
i Cup of liquid yeast, or 
I Cake of compressed yeast. 

Measure the milk after scalding, but otherwise pro- 
ceed exactly as in the making of water bread. 

1 Oven thermometers may be obtained of Joseph Davis & Co., Fitz- 
roy Works, London, S. E., England. 400° Fahr. is a good temperature 
tor the first fifteen minutes. Some writers give 380°, but the higher 
temperature is better, provided it can be gradually decreased; it 
should not fall below 250° until the loaf is done. Stoves with ther- 
mometers set in the oven doors, the index of which may be read from 
the outside, are in the market. 



240 EECIPES 



STICKS 



1 Cup of scalded milk. 
J Teaspoon of salt. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 

2 Tablespoons of butter. 

-J Cake of compressed yeast, or 

J Cup of liquid yeast. 

White of oue egg. 

Flour enough to make a slightly soft dough. 

Dissolve the salt and sugar, and soften the butter in 
the hot milk, which must be measured after heating. 
When it is cooled to lukewarmness, put in the yeast 
(which, if compressed, should be softened in a little cold 
water), the beaten white of the egg, and flour enough 
to make a dough slightly softer than that for ordinary 
bread. Let it rise overnight, or until light. Then cut it 
into small pieces, shape the pieces into balls, and roll 
and stretch them into tiny slender sticks, from ten 1?o 
twelve inches long, about half an inch thick in the 
middle, and tapering toward each end. Place them f 
two inches apart, in shallow, buttered pans, and put 
them in a warm place for an hour to rise ; then bake 
them in a moderate oven fifteen or twenty minutes, or 
until they are a golden brown. Sticks are good at any 
time; they are especially nice served with soup, or for 
lunch, with cocoa or tea. 

This dough may also be made into tiny loaves for 
tea-rolls. 

RUSK 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 
J Teaspoon of salt. 



RECIPES 241 

1 Cup of scalded milk. 

\ Cup of liquid yeast, or 

i Cake of compressed yeast. 

Flour enough to make a soft dough. 

Mix the above ingredients together, and let the 
dough rise overnight in the usual time given to 
bread. Then beat one-fourth of a cup of butter, one- 
fourth of a cup of sugar, and one egg together, and 
work the mixture into the dough, adding a little more 
flour to make it stiff enough to mold. Set it to rise a 
second time ; then shape it into rolls or tiny loaves, 
allow them to rise again until quite light, or for an 
hour in a warm place, and bake like bread. 



DRIED RUSK 

Cut the rusk when cold into thin slices, dry them 
slowly in the oven, and then brown them a delicate 
golden color. 

Dried rusk is exceedingly easy of digestion, and 
makes a delicious lunch with a glass of warm milk 
or a cup of tea. 

GRAHAM BREAD 

1 Pint of milk. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

i Cake of compressed yeast. 

2 Cups of white flour. 

Enough Graham flour to make a dough. 

Scald some milk, and from it measure a pint; to 
this add the sugar and salt. While it is cooling sift 
some Graham flour, being careful to exclude the chaff 



242 RECIPES 

or outside silicious covering of the grain, but nothing 
else. When the milk has become lukewarm, put in 
the yeast, which has previously been softened in a 
little cold water, and the white flour (sifted), with 
enough of the Graham to make a dough which shall 
be stiff, but yet not stiff enough to mold. Mix thor- 
oughly, and shape it with a spoon into a round mass 
in the dish. After this follow the same directions as 
for water bread, letting it rise the same time, and 
baking it in the same manner. 

After the dough has risen, although it is soft, it 
can be shaped into a loaf on the bread-board, but not 
molded. 

CREAM-OF-TARTAR BISCUIT 

First, attend to the fire ; see that you have a clear, 
steady one, such as will give a hot oven by the time 
the biscuits are ready for baking. Then sift some 
flour, and measure a quart. Into it put two tea- 
spoons of cream of tartar, and one of soda, the latter 
to be measured exactly like the teaspoons of cream of 
tartar, and then a very little taken off. This is a 
more accurate way of getting a scanted teaspoon than 
by taking some on the spoon and guessing at it. Add 
one teaspoon of salt, and sift all together four times, 
then with the fingers rub into the flour one spoon of 
butter. 

At this point, if it has not been already done, get 
the baking-pans, rolling-pin, board, dredging-box, and 
cutter ready for use. Then with a knife stir into the 
flour enough milk to make a soft dough. Do this as 
quickly as convenient, and without any delay mold 
the dough just enough to shape it ; roll it out, cut it 
into biscuits, and put them immediately into the oven, 
where they should bake for thirty minutes. 



RECIPES 243 

Pocket-Books. Work or knead together the pieces 
that are left after making cream-of -tartar biscnit (or 
make a dongh on purpose), roll it out very thin, cut 
it into rounds, brush them over with milk or melted 
butter, fold once so as to make a half-moon shape, 
and you will have " pocket-books." 

Twin Biscuit. Roll out some dough very thin, cut 
it into very small rounds, and place one on top of 
another, with butter between. 

Iced water may be substituted for milk in the above 
rule. In baking, however, the oven should be unusu- 
ally hot, so as to take advantage of the expansion of 
the water. Also, baking-powder may be substituted 
for the cream of tartar and soda, using a fourth more 
of the baking-powder than of the two together. 



SNOW-CAKES 

J Tablespoon of butter. 

1 Tablespoon of sugar. 
Whites of two eggs. 

2 Cups of flour. 

1 Saltspoon of salt. 

1J Teaspoons of baking-powder. 

1 Cup of milk. 

Measure each of the ingredients carefully, then sift 
the flour, salt, and baking-powder together four times. 
Cream the butter and sugar with a little of the milk, 
then add the whites of the eggs well beaten, the rest 
of the milk, and last the flour. Bake this batter in 
hot buttered gem-pans from twenty minutes to half 
an hour. These cakes are delicious eaten hot for 
lunch or tea'. This mixture may also be baked in 
small, round earthen cups. 



244 RECIPES 



GRAHAM GEMS 

1 Cup of milk. 

J Teaspoon of salt. 

£ Cup of white flour. 

1 Cup of Graham flour. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 

1 Teaspoon of cream of tartar. 

J Teaspoon of soda {slightly scanted). 

1 Tablespoon of melted butter. 

Sift and measure the Graham flour, add the cream 
of tartar, soda, and white flour, and sift again. Mix 
the milk, salt, and sugar together, and stir it into the 
flour ; last, put in the melted butter, beat for a min- 
ute, and then drop a spoonful in each division of a 
roll gem-pan, which should be well buttered, and 
made very hot on the top of the stove. Bake in a 
hot oven from twenty-five minutes to half an hour. 
Serve hot. 

OATMEAL MUFFINS 

2J Cups of flour. 

2 Teaspoons of baking-powder. 

1 Teaspoon of salt. 

2 Tablespoons of sugar. 
lEgg. 

1 Cup of milk. 

1 Cup of cooked oatmeal. 

1 Tablespoon of butter melted. 

Sift the flour and baking-powder together twice. 
Beat the egg very light, stir into it the salt, sugar, 
and milk, then add the flour, and last the oatmeal and 



EECIPES 245 

butter; beat for half a minute, and bake immedi- 
ately in gem-pans or muffin -rings in a hot oven for 
half an hour. 

N. B. — The oatmeal should not be cooked to a soft, 
thin mush, but should be rather dry; so, in preparing 
it, use less water than for porridge. These cakes are 
to be eaten hot. 

GLUTEN BREAD 

Gluten flour is prepared in such a way that much 
of the starch of the grain is excluded. It is frequently 
required for persons suffering with diabetes, who 
cannot digest either sugar or starch. It should be 
made with flour, water, yeast, and salt only. Do not 
use milk for mixing, as it contains sugar. 

One pint of water, one half teaspoon of salt, one 
fifth of a cake of yeast, one tablespoon of butter, and 
enough flour to make the usual bread dough will be 
required. Otherwise the process is exactly the same as 
for ordinary bread. 

BAKING-POWDER 

Baking-powder is a mixture of cream of tartar, bi- 
carbonate of soda, and arrowroot. The latter is used 
to keep the two chemicals dry, and thus prevent the 
slow union which would otherwise take place. Some- 
times tartaric acid is used instead of cream of tartar. 
The following rule may be relied upon : 

Tartaric acid 2 oz. by weight. 

Bicarbonate of soda 3 " " " 

Arrowroot 3 " " " 

Mix and sift together thoroughly. Keep in a dry 
place, in a wide-mouthed bottle. 

17 



CAKE 

Cake of the simpler kinds, especially sponge cake, 
is frequently given to the sick. Good sponge cake, 
served with sweet cream or a glass of milk, is an ex- 
cellent lunch for an invalid. Some of the plain kinds 
of butter cakes — those made with a little butter — 
such as white, feather, and similar varieties, are ex- 
cellent food. 

Consider for a moment what they contain : eggs, 
milk, butter, sugar, and flour — five of the most valua- 
ble of all our food products. Yet there are those 
who pride themselves upon not eating cake, which 
idiosyncrasy can only be explained in one of two 
ways : either the cake which they have had has not 
been properly made, or else it has been so good 
that, during a lapse of judgment, they have eaten 
too much. 

The dark fruit cakes should be avoided by both 
sick and well, on account of the indigestible nature 
of the dried fruits used in them, and also because they 
are often compact and close-grained, not light. 

There is a custom prevalent in many kitchens of 
using what is called "cooking" butter — that is, butter 
which is off taste or rancid — for cake. It is but poor 
economy, even if it can merit that name at all. If 
you have no other butter for cake, don't make any. 
Sweet butter and fresh — not "store" — eggs are ab- 
solutely necessary. Also, a dainty worker to mix the 
ingredients with accuracy and care, and to oil the pan 

246 



RECIPES 247 

in which the cake is to be baked, so that the outside 
shall not taste of fat. Many an otherwise nice cake 
has been spoiled by oiling the pan in which it was 
baked with dirty or rancid grease. Use a very little 
sweet butter or olive-oil. 



THE PROCESS OF CAKE MAKING 

All ordinary cakes are made in much the same way 
as to the order in which their ingredients are mixed. 
First the butter and sugar are creamed together, then 
the yolks of the eggs are beaten and added, with the 
milk, to the butter and sugar; then the flour, into 
which the cream of tartar and soda have been well 
mixed by sifting them together several times, is put 
in ; and last, the beaten whites of the eggs. 

Care in Baking. For sponge cake made with bak- 
ing-powder, or soda and cream of tartar, an oven 
moderately heated will be required — that is, one of 
300° Fahr., or one which will slightly brown a loaf in 
twenty minutes. 

For sponge cake made without raising material, 
such as the old-fashioned kind, in which only eggs, 
sugar, and flour are used, a slow oven is necessary. 

For butter cakes a temperature somewhere between 
350° and 380° will not fail. 

The baking of cake is the most difficult part of the 
process, on account of the constantly variable condi- 
tion of ovens in common iron stoves, and because it is 
more easily spoiled than bread and other foods usually 
cooked in an oven. One is obliged to exercise a new 
judgment every time cake is made. Even thermome- 
ters are only a partial help, for if an oven has a tem- 
perature of 300° Fahr. at a certain time, there is no 
means of being sure what the temperature will be half 



248 RECIPES 

an hour from then. However, by giving attention 
and some practice to it, one may gain considerable 
skill in managing fires. Should the cake be cooking 
too fast, and arranging the stove dampers does not 
lessen the heat, a piece of buttered paper laid over 
the top will protect it, and will not stick. Layer, or 
thin cakes, require a hotter oven than loaves. 

Pans for baking cake should be lined with buttered 
paper (the buttered side up), letting it overlap the 
sides for about an inch to assist in lifting out the 
cake. An earthenware bowl and a wooden spoon 
should be used for mixing. 

Get everythiug ready before beginning to mix cake, 
the oven first of all. Bake as soon as possible after 
the flour is in, for carbonic acid begins to be formed 
as soon as the soda and cream of tartar come in con- 
tact with the liquid, and some of it will escape unless 
the mixture is baked at once. Do not stop to scrape 
every bit from the bowl ; that can be attended to af- 
terward, and a little patty-cake made of what is left. 



INVALID'S SPONGE CAKE 

2 Cups of pastry flour measured after sifting. 

1 Teaspoon of cream of tartar. 

J Teaspoon of soda (slightly scanted). 

4 Eggs. 

1J Cups of powdered sugar. 

J Cup of water. 

2 Tablespoons of lemon- juice. 

Get everything ready before beginning to make 
the cake; oil the pan, or oil paper and line the pan 
with it; measure the flour, cream of tartar, and soda, 
and sift them together four times; measure the sugar, 



EECIPES 249 

water, and lemon-juice, and separate the yolks from 
the whites of the eggs. Beat the whites of the eggs 
with half the sugar until they are very light. Then 
beat the yolks very light, or until they become lemon- 
colored, add the remaining half of the sugar and beat 
again, and then a little of the water if it is difficult to 
turn the egg-beater. When the sugar is well mixed, 
add the remainder of the water, the lemon -juice, and 
the flour. Beat for a few seconds, but not long, as all 
mixtures that have cream of tartar and soda should 
be baked as quickly as possible. Last of all fold in 
(not beat) the whites of the eggs lightly, so as not to 
break out the air which has been entangled by the 
beating, as it helps to make the cake light. 

Bake in a moderate oven from forty-five to fifty 
minutes, or until the cake shrinks a little from the 
pan. 

FEATHER CAKE 

J Cup of butter. 

1 Cup of sugar. 

2 Eggs. 

i Cup of milk. 

2 Cups of pastry flour. 

\ Teaspoon of soda (slightly scanted). 

1 Teaspoon of cream of tartar. 

A little grated nutmeg. 

1 Teaspoon of vanilla. 

See first of all that you have a proper fire. Measure 
the ingredients, and get everything ready before be- 
ginning — mixing-bowl, pans, etc. Use a wooden cake 
spoon, with slits in the bowl, for mixing. Line the 
pans with buttered paper. Then cream the butter, 
adding to it half the sugar and half the milk, the 
latter very slowly; separate the yolks of the eggs 



250 RECIPES 

from the whites, and beat them with the remaining 
sugar j when they are very light add the rest of the 
milk. Beat the whites until stiff. Now mix the 
creamed butter and yolks together with the flavor- 
ing, then stir in the flour, and last the whites, which 
are to be cut and folded iu, not beaten. Bake it in 
shallow pans in a moderate oven forty minutes, or 
about that time. When the cake begins to shrink a 
little from the sides of the pan, there is no doubt that 
it is cooked enough. This recipe may be used for a 
variety of plain cakes. 

For Chocolate Cake. Melt and stir into the above 
mixture two ounces of Baker's chocolate, or two tea- 
spoons of cocoa wet in a little warm water. 

For Rose Cake. Color the feather cake mixture with 
six drops of carmine. 



LAYER CAKE 

Oil three layer cake pans, or pie-plates. Make the 
feather cake mixture, and divide it into three por- 
tions. Bake one white, color another pink with three 
or four drops of carmine, and the third brown with 
an ounce of melted chocolate. Bake in a hot oven 
for fifteen minutes. When cool, join the layers with 
White Mountain frosting, and frost the top of the last 
layer. Any of the fillings given under the head of 
" Cake Filling " may also be used. 

When chocolate is used in cake, it is not necessary 
to grate it or even to break it into small pieces. It 
contains a large proportion of fat which liquefies at 
a low temperature, consequently it is necessary only 
to heat it slowly to reduce it to the liquid state. 



RECIPES 251 



CARMINE FOR COLORING 

The following rule for making liquid carmine for 
coloring cake, ice-cream, blanc-mange, etc., will be 
found useful: 

1 Ounce of No. 40 carmine. 
3 Ounces of boiling water. 
1 Ounce of ammonia. 

Bottle for use. It will keep indefinitely. 

WHITE CAKE 

1 Tablespoon of butter. 

1 Cup of sugar (powdered). 

\ Cup of milk. 

1J Cups of pastry flour. 

\ Teaspoon of soda. 

1 Teaspoon of cream of tartar. 

Whites of four eggs. 

\ Teaspoon of almond extract, or 

1 Teaspoon of rose-water. 

Proceed, as with all cake mixtures, by getting every- 
thing ready before beginning to mix any of the in- 
gredients, not forgetting the fire. Then cream the 
butter with the sugar, and add the milk to it slowly, 
so that the cream shall not break. Beat the whites of 
the eggs very stiff. Then to the butter, sugar, etc., 
add the flour, with which the cream of tartar aud soda 
have been sifted at least four times, and the flavoring; 
last, fold in the whites of the eggs, and bake in a round 
loaf for an hour and a quarter or an hour and a half in 
a slow oven. 



252 



RECIPES 



DREAM CAKE 

Make a white cake mixture. Bake it in shallow 
layer-cake pans, in a moderate, not slow, oven. Join 
them with a caramel filling, and frost the top with 
the same, or nse White Mountain frosting instead of 
the caramel, flavored with rose-water, and left either 
white, or colored a delicate shell pink with carmine. 



CAKE FILLING AND FROSTING 

WHITE MOUNTAIN FROSTING 

Boil together, without stirring, one cup of granu- 
lated sugar with one third of a cup of boiling water, 
for eight or ten minutes. When the sugar has been 
boiling five minutes, beat the white of one egg until 
it is very light. Then test the sugar mixture by let- 
ting a little run off the side of a spoon. If in falling 
it forms a delicate thread, it is just at the point to 
stop the boiling. When it has reached this point, 
pour it at once into the beaten egg in a small stream, 
stirring the egg constantly to keep it smooth. Con- 
tinue stirring for two or three minutes until it begins 
to thicken, then spread it either between layer cakes 
for filling, or use it for frosting. 



CARAMEL FILLING 



1 Cup of brown sugar. 
J Cup of sweet cream. 
1 Teaspoon of butter, 



RECIPES 253 

Boil all together until it threads, stirring it slowly 
as it boils. It will take about eight minutes. Use 
either for frosting or filling. 

CHOCOLATE ICING 

£ Cup of sugar. 

4 Tablespoons of water. 

2 Eggs. 

1 Ounce of chocolate, or 

1 Tablespoon of Dutch cocoa. 

1 Teaspoon of vanilla. 

Boil the sugar, water, and chocolate together, two 
minutes, to render the chocolate smooth. Then add 
the beaten eggs. Cook two minutes more, stirring 
slowly and gently. Add the vanilla just as it is taken 
from the fire, and use at once, as it becomes firm 
quickly. It is good either for icing cakes or for 
filling. 

CREAM FILLING 

Make a cream sauce with one cup of milk, a table- 
spoon of butter, and a tablespoon of flour. Beat one 
egg with half a cup of sugar, and stir it into the sauce 
slowly. Cook for two minutes, or until the egg is 
done. It should look like a thick smooth cream. 
Flavor it with a piece of cinnamon bark boiled in 
the milk, or with vanilla or almond. Use this cream 
for filling, for layer cakes, or split a thin sponge 
cake in two, and spread it between the halves. 

In compiling the foregoing recipes valuable information was 
found in the Boston Cook Book, permission to the use of which 
was kindly given by its author, Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. 



DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 

Diet for the sick may be divided into three kinds: 
Liquid, Light, and Convalescent's or Invalid's Diet. 

Liquid diet consists entirely of liquids, of which 
milk is the most valuable. The meat broths (those 
made with beef, chicken, and mutton), oyster and 
clam broth, albumen water, eggs in the form of egg- 
nog, egg cream, and mulled wine, and tea and coffee 
are excellent. To this list may be added, as the pa- 
tient shows signs of recovery, soft custards, and jel- 
lies made with wine, lemon, coffee, or orange- juice, 
w T hich quickly become liquid when eaten. 

A patient is given liquid diet during times of severe 
and dangerous illness. Usually the amount of food 
and intervals at which it is to be given are prescribed 
by the physician. 

The following table may be of assistance to those 
who are without such aid: 



LIQUID DIET 

No. 1 

8 A. M. Hot milk £ of a cup 

10 a. m. Hot coffee with cream and a little sugar £ of a cup 

12 m. Beef -juice 2 tablespoons 

2 P. M. Warm milk f of a cup 

4 p. m. Wine whey £ of a cup 

6 p. m. Hot milk f of a cup 

8 p. M. Hot cocoa f of a cup 

254 



DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 255 

No. 2 

8 A. M. Hot milk | of a cup 

10 A. M. Chicken broth . .- £ of a cup 

12 m. Egg-nog £ tumbler 

2 p. m. Milk f of a cup 

4 p. M. Hot tea with cream and sugar £ of a cup 

6 p. M. Chicken broth £ of a cup 

8 P. m. Hot milk f of a cup 

NO. 3 

8 A. M. Hot milk £ of a cup 

10 a. m. Beef broth £ of a cup 

12 m. Beef -juice 2 tablespoons 

2 p. m. Milk, either warm or cold £ of a cup 

4 p. m. Oyster broth with milk £ of a cup 

6 P. M. Hot milk £ of a cup 

8 p. m. Hot cocoa £ of a cup 

No. 4 

8 a. m. Hot cocoa £ of a cup 

10 A. M. Hot milk £ of a cup 

12 m. Beef-juice, warm or cold £ of a cup 

2 p. m. Beef broth, hot £ of a cup 

4 p. m. Wine jelly 2 tablespoons 

6 p. m. Hot cocoa | of a cup 

8 p. m. Hot milk f of a cup 

No. 5 

8 a. m. Hot milk £ of a cup 

10 a. m. Coffee with cream and sugar i of a cup 

12 m. Hot beef broth £ of a cup 

2 p. m. Orange jelly 3 tablespoons 

4 p. M. Mulled wine £ of a cup 

6 P. M. Warm or cold soft custard £ of a cup 

8 p. m. Warm cocoa £ of a cup 



If nourishment is to be given throughout the night, 
either hot or warm milk or cocoa is good. They 
are soothing and sometimes induce sleep. Tea and 
wine whey should be avoided at night, unless, of 



256 DIET LISTS OE MENUS FOR THE SICK 

course, the patient needs stimulating, in which case 
use the wine only, for tea often causes wakefulness. 

The whites of eggs beaten and strained, and mixed 
with finely crushed ice, is a valuable form of food 
for a typhoid fever patient. Toast-water and cracker 
tea are good in all feverish conditions. Milk may be 
varied by making it into milk-punch, with a very little 
sugar (a scanty teaspoon) and a tablespoon of brandy 
or sherry to each tumbler, or it may be made with a 
few drops of vanilla, instead of the brandy or sherry. 



LIGHT DIET 

Light diet consists of everything included in liquid 
diet, and in addition fruits, such as grapes and 
oranges; porridge of granum or farina j soft-cooked 
or poached eggs ; dry, water, milk, and cream toast ; 
the maigre soups, such as celery and mock-bisque, and 
chicken; delicate puddings, coffee and velvet cream, 
and baked custards, with perhaps for dinner a meat 
ball, a small bit of beefsteak or roast beef, and a 
baked potato. 

Jellies made with gelatine, especially when flavored 
with wine, are a very valuable form of food with which 
to make the transition from liquid to light diet. They 
are palatable, nutritious, and, being in solid form, 
are satisfying to the minds of those who think they 
are not getting much to eat when fed on liquids alone. 

The change from liquid to light diet should be 
made gradually, adding one kind of solid food at a 
time. Perhaps after the jellies a bit of water or milk 
toast, then an egg, then a little soup or pudding, until, 
as strength is gained, the person is able to take any- 
thing in the list, and finally is able to eat almost any 
kind of nutritious and well-prepared food. 



DIET LISTS OE MENUS FOR THE SICK 257 

First Day. 

Breakfast. 
Poached Egg on Toast. Cocoa. 

Lunch. 
Milk-punch. 

Dinner. 
Raw Oysters. Cream -crackers. Port Wine. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Beef Broth. 

Supper. 
Milk Toast. Wine Jelly. Tea. 

Second Day. 

Breakfast. 

Soft-cooked Egg. Milk Toast. 
Coffee with Sugar and Cream. 

Lunch. 

1 Cup of Soft Custard. 

Dinner. 

Cream- of -celery Soup. Sippets. 
A little Barley Pudding, with Cream. Sherry Wine. 

Lunch. 

Milk-punch. 

Supper. 

Water Toast, Buttered. Wine Jelly. Tea. 



258 DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOE THE SICK 

Third Day. 

Breakfast. 
Scrambled Egg. Cream Toast. Cocoa. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Chicken Broth. 

Dinner. 

Chicken Panada. Bread. Port Wine. 
A little Tapioca Cream. 

Lunch. 
An Egg-nog. 

Supper. 

Buttered Dry Toast. Baked Sweet Apples and Cream 

Tea. 

Fourth Day. 

Breakfast. 

An Orange. 

Farina Mush, with Cream and Sugar. 

Poached Egg on Toast. Baked Potato. Cocoa. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Soft Custard. 

Dinner. 

Potato Soup. Croutons. 

A small Piece of Beefsteak. Creamed Potatoes. 

Baked Custard. Coffee. 



DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 259 
Lunch. 
1 Cup of Chicken Broth, with Rice. 

Supper. 

Raw Oysters. Banquet Crackers. 
Graham Bread, Toasted. Wine Jelly. Tea. 

Fifth Day. 

Breakfast. 

An Orange. 

Coffee. Mush of Wheat G-erm, with Cream and Sugar. 

Broiled Mutton Chop. Toast. 

Lunch. 

1 Cup of Mulled Wine. 

Dinner, 

Chicken Soup. Bread. 

Creamed Sweetbreads. Duchess Potato. 

Snow Pudding. Cocoa. 

Lunch. 

Siphon Soda, with Coffee Syrup and Cream. 

Supper. 

Buttered Dry Toast. Orange Jelly. 
Sponge Cake and Cream. Tea. 



<JGO DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 



CONVALESCENT'S DIET 

Convalescent's diet includes the liquid and light 
diets, and, in addition, all easily digested and nutri- 
tious food. For meats, game, especially venison and 
birds, beef, mutton, and chicken may be given, but 
never either pork or veal. They are difficult of di- 
gestion. Eggs in all ways, soft-cooked, scrambled, 
poached, and as omelets, well-baked potatoes, creamed 
potatoes, celery, snow pudding, cream of rice pudding, 
and tapioca cream, jellies, both those made from gela- 
tine and fruits, Graham bread, Graham gems, rusk, 
and, in fact, any well-made bread, and good cake. 

A convalescent may use for drinks plenty of good 
milk, cocoa, carefully made tea and coffee, occasion- 
ally good wine, and the different mineral and drink- 
ing waters. Some foods to be avoided are pastry, 
dark or badly made cakes, pork, veal, any highly sea- 
soned meat dish made with gravy, all kinds of fried 
food, sausages, heavy puddings, badly made bread, 
lobsters and crabs. 



SPRING 

No. 1 

Breakfast, 

An Orange. 

Porridge of Wheat Flakes, with Cream and Sugar. 

Omelet, with Broiled Ham. 

Coffee. Hot Graham Gems and Butter. 



Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Beef Broth. A Cream -cracker. 



DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 261 

• Dinner. 

Chicken Soup. Creamed Fish. 

Mashed Potato. Snow Pudding. 

White Cake. Tea. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Milk. 

Supper. 

Broiled Squab on Toast. Creamed Potatoes. 

Bread and Butter. Jelly. 

Cocoa. 



No. 2 

Breakfast. 

An Orange. 

Farina Porridge, with Cream and Sugar. 

French Chops (Mutton). Baked Potato. 

Cream Toast of Graham Bread. 

Cocoa. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Cracker Gruel. 

Dinner. 

Mock-bisque Soup. Sticks. 

Roast Beef. French Peas. Mashed Potato. 

Bread and Butter. 

Baked Cup Custard. Coffee or Claret. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Bouillon. 

18 



262 DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOE THE SICK 

Supper. 

Scrambled Eggs. Creamed Potatoes. 

Water Toast, with Apple Compote. 

Feather Cake. Tea. 



SUMMER 

No. 1 

Breakfast. 

Blackberries. 

Farina Porridge, with Cream and Sugar. 

Broiled Steak. Baked Potatoes. 

Dry Toast. Cocoa. 

Lunch. 
1 Tumbler of Kumiss. 

Dinner. 

Potato Soup made with New Potatoes. 

Baked Fish. Mashed Potatoes. Peas. 

Chicken Salad. Lemon Jelly. 

Tea. 

Lunch. 
Soda-water, with Vanilla Syrup and Cream. 

Supper. 

Cold Broiled Chicken. Bread and Butter. 

Blueberries. White Cake. 

Cocoa. 



DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOE THE SICK 263 
No. 2 
Breakfast. 

Blueberries. 

Broiled Perch. Baked Potatoes. 

Hot Snow Cakes, with' Butter. 

Coffee. 

Lunch. 
Milk-punch. 

Dinner. 

Broiled French Chop. Duchess Potato. 

Peas. Tomato Salad. 

Tapioca Cream. Wine Jelly. 

Lemonade. 

Lunch. 

Egg-nog. 

Supper. 

Hot Water Toast, Buttered. Berries. 

Omelet, with Parsley. 

Tea. Soft Custard in Cups. 



AUTUMN 

No. 1 

Breakfast. 

Oatmeal Mush, with Cream and Sugar 

Broiled Steak. Baked Potatoes. 

Oatmeal Muffins, Hot, with Butter. 

Coffee. 



264 DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 

Lunch, 
1 Gup of Hot Beef Broth. A Banquet Cracker. 

Dinner. 

Celery Soup. Sippets. Roast Pheasant, with Jelly. 

Potato. Stewed Mushrooms. 

Velvet Cream. Cocoa. 

Lunch. 
A thin Sandwich of Bread and Butter. Tea. 

Supper. 

Raw Oysters. Cream Toast. Baked Apples. 
Rusk. Tea. 



No. 2 

Breakfast 

Cantaloup. 

Farina Porridge, with Cream and Sugar. 

Broiled Mutton Chop. Baked Potatoes. 

Dry Toast. Coffee. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Chicken Broth. 

Dinner. 

Oyster Soup. Sticks. 

Roast Beef. Creamed Potatoes. 

Celery Salad. 

Coffee Cream. Tea. 

Lunch. 
A Cup of Hot Oatmeal Gruel. 



DIET LISTS OE MENUS FOE THE SICK 265 

Supper. 

Poached Egg on Toast. Cocoa. 
Graham Bread and Bntter. Sponge Cake. 



WINTER 

No. 1 

Breakfast. 

An Orange. 

Oatmeal Porridge, with Cream and Sugar. Coffee. 

Broiled Steak. Baked Potato. Cream Toast. 

Lunch. 

Egg-nog. 

Dinner. 

Celery Soup. Croutons. 

Roast Chicken. Creamed Onions. Duchess Potato. 

Lettuce Salad (plain). Velvet Cream. Coffee. 

Lunch. 
Cocoa Cordial. Sponge Cake. 

Supper. 

Fancy Roast of Oysters. Dry Toast. 
Chocolate, with Whipped Cream. Orange Jelly. 

No. 2 

Breakfast. 

An Orange. 

Wheat Germ, with Cream and Sugar. 

Broiled Partridge. Dry Toast. Coffee. 



286 DIET LISTS OR MENUS FOR THE SICK 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Hot Chicken Broth. 

Dinner. 

Consomme. Bread. 
Roast Beef. Mashed Potatoes. 

Tomato Salad. 
Cream of Rice Pudding. Coffee. 

Lunch. 
1 Cup of Mulled Wine. 

Supper. 

Venison Steak, with Port Wine Sauce. 

Toast. Sponge Cake, with Sweet Cream. 

Cocoa. 






SERVING 

If cooking be a science, then serving is an art. It 
perhaps more closely resembles painting than any 
other, for a well-spread table should be a picture, and 
each separate dish a choice bit in the landscape. The 
invalid's tray should be a dainty Dresden water-color 
of delicate hues and harmonious tints. 

It is not easy to give definite directions in regard 
to serving, for it involves so much of good taste in so 
many directions, and depends so largely upon the in- 
dividual and the circumstances. It requires intelli- 
gent study, a cultivated habit of thought, and the 
appreciation of symmetry, and the harmony of colors; 
to do it well one must ever judge anew and arrange 
again, for no two meals are exactly alike in all their 
details. 

Of course, the most important thing in serving is 
the thing to be served. A badly prepared or un- 
wholesome dish, no matter how beautifully it may be 
presented, is worthless — perhaps even worse, for it 
may prove a positive source of evil. An indifferently 
done steak, served on a silver platter, is less accepta- 
ble than one perfectly cooked on plain china, or a bit 
of burned toast on Dresden ware than a daintily 
browned piece on a common white plate. Put the 
force, therefore, of your efforts on securing that 
which is wholesome in itself, adapted to the needs of 
the patient, and perfectly cooked ; then serve it in the 
most attractive manner at your command. 

267 



268 



SERVING 



Good serving is a necessity for the sick. It should 
never be regarded as simply ornamental. When a 
person has the hunger of health, colors and dishes are 
not of great account j but when one is ill, or exhausted 
with fatigue, sometimes a pretty color, a dainty cup, or 
beauty of arrangement makes all the difference, and 
one is tempted to eat when otherwise the food would 
remain untouched. 

Simplicity should rule at all times the arrangement 
of an invalid's tray. Anything like display is entirely 
out of place. Japanned trays of oval shape are the 
ones in general use. When one is fortunate enough 
to possess a silver tray, the dishes may be placed di- 
rectly upon it, or on a doily, which covers the center 
of it. All other trays should be completely covered 
with a dainty snowy napkin, or tray-cloth. 

After the napkin has been neatly spread upon the 
tray, place a plate in the middle of the side nearest to 
you, and then arrange the other dishes about it, with 
the tiny earthen teapot on the right, and the sugar- 
bowl and cream-pitcher of silver next to it ; the knife, 
fork, and spoons should be on the right and left of 
the plate, never in front of it. The various dishes to 
be served should then be arranged symmetrically in 
other parts of the tray, not scattered about without 
the appearance of order. 

Never crowd a tray. Calculate beforehand how 
many dishes you will probably have, and select a size 
accordingly. Serve a single glass or a single cup on 
a small round or oval tray with a doily, never on a 
large tray, such as might be selected for a meal. 

When practicable use silver dishes for meats, soups, 
coffee, hot milk, or any hot food; when these cannot 
be had, use hot china. 

Avoid discords in color. Most women have an in- 
stinctive appreciation of color, and by giving some 



SERVING 269 

thought to the subject of harmonies, and observing 
the methods of others who are known to have good 
taste in such matters, bad blunders in the arrange- 
ment of a tray or a table may be avoided. 

Bed with yellow, blue with green, and yellow with 
pink are inharmonious combinations of color ; but 
yellow with white, blue with white, dull orange with 
brown, violet and pale gold are exquisite together. 

A cup of chocolate in pale pink or dull red, coffee 
in buttercup yellow, especially when served without 
cream, and green tea in Nile green, appeal to the eye 
as well as to the taste, giving double pleasure — grati- 
fying two senses instead of one. 

Color plays a very important part in serving food. 
It produces strong effects in some persons who are 
deeply moved by harmonies or discords in it, as 
others are by harmonies or discords in music. Color 
appeals to the esthetic side of some natures much 
more forcibly than many of us are aware. 

The story is told of a lady, possessed of unusually 
keen color-perception, who had been living for many 
months in a house furnished in monotonous hues, 
and in which the table was always set in plain white 
cloth and white china. Being invited to lunch with 
a friend in the neighborhood, she was moved to tears 
at the sight of a beautiful table, decorated with a 
scarlet cloth, flowers, and harmoniously contrasting 
colored china. 

The effect of the colors upon the emotions was simi- 
lar to that which is sometimes produced by an ex- 
quisite strain of music. Who can say how much of 
subtle refining influence may be exerted by such 
things? Regarded as a general thing only in the light 
of the ornamental, they are too often looked upon as 
luxuries, and therefore dispensable; but whatever 
ministers to the esthetic side of the mind must be 



270 



SERVING 



elevating, and the influence of neatness, of beautiful 
surroundings, of harmonious colors, of art in any 
form, inevitably produces an effect upon character. 
In time such surroundings become necessities, and 
when the individual is deprived of them they are 
missed, and he feels a sense of dissatisfaction with 
those of meaner kind — perhaps dissatisfaction with a 
poorer or lower life in any way — and imperceptibly 
these seeming ornaments of existence may be the 
means which shall lift many an one into a higher plane 
of life, so that, aside from their practical value, all the 
niceties of household affairs may have a lasting effect 
for good upon character. 

To be progressive, one must be constantly in a 
frame of mind to learn, and ever on the alert for in- 
formation. Fashions change in serving foods as in 
other things. However, there are certain fixed prin- 
ciples which always remain unchanged. Perfect 
neatness, orderly and pleasing arrangement, and har- 
monious coloring are ever essential. 

For the invalid's tray use the prettiest china obtain- 
able. In a private house there are always some choice 
and precious pieces — teacups, quaint silver pitchers 
and spoons, pretty plates, and delicate thin tumblers. 
These will be gladly placed at the disposal of the 
sick one, especially if the nurse will volunteer to be 
responsible for them. 

To prepare a meal for an invalid after planning the 
food, the first necessary articles are a tray clean on 
both sides, a neat napkin to spread over it, and ex- 
quisitely clean dishes done by a servant known to be 
neat, or by one's self. It not infrequently happens, 
especially in houses in which the mistress leaves every- 
thing to the servants, and never goes into the kitchen, 
that dishes are washed in such surroundings of dirt, 
and wiped with such unclean towels, as to be danger- 



SERVING 271 

ous for any one to use. It is therefore necessary for 
a nurse to understand about such matters, and to see 
to it that her patient's dishes are above suspicion. In 
fact, it is a dainty attention on her part to care en- 
tirely for the tray-dishes of her charge. 

In some forms of disease it is absolutely necessary, 
in order to prevent contagion, that a nurse should at- 
tend altogether to the tray and dishes, for it would 
almost never occur that any member of a household 
would understand an effectual method of sterilization. 

In a contagious disease everything that goes to the 
bedside — dishes, knives, forks, spoons, napkin, the 
tray itself — should be rendered sterile by boiling in 
water for half an hour, or by treatment with steam 
for a similar time, before any one, except the nurse, 
even touches them. 

Nothing should be used in the way of linen or 
dishes that cannot be washed without spoiling ; there- 
fore fancy silk doilies and other similar furnishings 
are to be avoided. 

When it is necessary to taste of food before giving 
it to a patient, take some into a separate dish, and use 
a separate spoon or fork ; or, if it is a liquid, take out 
a little with a spoon into another spoon, being care- 
ful that the one used for tasting does not at any time 
touch the liquid. 

Never touch the bowls of spoons, nor the inside 
of plates and cups, with the fingers, unless the hands 
are prepared by thorough cleansing for it. A nurse 
who understands antiseptic surgery, and knows how 
easily contagion is carried, will appreciate the ne- 
cessity of these precautions. The hands should be 
washed after arranging a bed, using a handkerchief, 
arranging the hair — in fact, always before handling 
either food or dishes. 

Food and drink should not be allowed to remain 



272 SERVING 

exposed to the air for any length of time. Most 
kinds of food are excellent media for micro-organisms 
to flourish in, and consequently the food, if it be such 
as might be eaten afterward, deteriorates. 

Then, from an esthetic point of view, it is the height 
of untidiness to allow a tray to remain in the sick-room 
any length of time after the meal has been eaten. It 
should be immediately removed with all traces of the 
meal, as should also fruit, glasses for water, lemon- 
ade, milk, etc., which may be used at different times 
during the day. 

If the patient objects and wishes to have what is 
left for future use, assure him that it is near at hand, 
and being kept cool and clean for him. By punctu- 
ally fulfilling promises made about such matters, he 
will very quickly learn to trust a nurse, not only in 
these, but in other things. 

For decoration for a tray nothing should be used 
besides pretty china and flowers. A slender glass or 
silver vase with a blossom or two, or a delicate fern 
with a white or pink flower, are always suitable. It 
is well to use ferns and other fresh green decorations 
liberally, especially in winter. Green is always grate- 
ful to the sight, and sometimes a single spray will 
give pleasure to an invalid for hours. 

Violets, roses, orchids, and all flowers that are 
dainty in themselves, are always in good taste, but a 
very few or a single blossom is all that is allowable. 
A big bouquet on a tray or an invalid's table is as out 
of place as a whole roast or a whole pudding. Flow- 
ers with strong odors or primary colors should be 
avoided, such, for instance, as marigolds, fleur de lis, 
and dahlias. They are handsome in a garden or a 
hall, but not at the bedside. 

Little attentions in the way of ornamentation, and 
thoughtfulness as to an invalid's meal, are deeply 






SERVING 273 

appreciated. They show that an effort has been made 
to please, and to many sick ones the feeling that they 
are a constant care to those about them is a very op- 
pressive one. It should be the pleasure of a good 
nurse to dispel such thoughts. It is the duty of every 
nurse to do so. 

Variety for those who are sick (after they are out 
of danger, and waiting for streugth to return) is just 
as necessary as for those who are well, and for the 
same reason — that is, to furnish the body with all 
those substances required for perfect nutrition. Many 
think that because a person is ill, or an invalid, he 
must be denied all things that are good, and fed 
upon such dishes as well persons generally abhor, like 
water gruel, thin oyster stews, and half -cooked corn- 
starch pudding. 

It is curious how such an idea should have been 
lodged in the mind, but it is probably a relic of the 
old treatment in the days before antiseptic surgery 
and the modern practice of medicine. Now, as soon 
as a patient is out of danger, careful feeding with 
a variety of wholesome, perfectly cooked, nutritious 
food — of course, wisely administered as to quantity — 
is an essential part of the treatment, and constitutes 
nearly the whole cure in some forms of disease of the 
nervous system. 

The body, depleted and exhausted by long-con- 
tinued sickness, is without resources, and must draw 
from food (and, of course, air) all those substances 
needed for repair and the restoration of bodily vigor. 
To insure this, different kinds of food are required, 
for no single one, not even milk, contains everything 
needed. 1 Fruits of various kinds, green salads and 

i There is, of course, an exception in the case of the use of milk for 
young children, it being a perfect food for them during the first year 
or year and a half of life. 



274 SERVING 

vegetables, fish, beef, and mutton should be used, as 
well as milk, eggs, chicken, and toast. 

Ease in serving the sick is an accomplishment in a 
nurse, and a certain amount of seeming indifference 
is an advisable quality to cultivate. It is a good plan 
to take every possible care in preparing a meal for a 
sick person, and then to appear not to notice whether 
he eats ; for sometimes sensitive people, in their desire 
not to disappoint, or in their endeavors to please, will 
eat when they do not care for food. 

Endeavor to remember individual tastes, and try 
to gratify them; always do so when it is in your 
power, for these individual preferences are often true 
instincts of the individual nature striving to secure 
that which is best for it. If a man asks for the 
second joint of a fowl, don't take to him a cut from 
the breast, even though you may think it the choicest 
portion. 

Food should be given at regular intervals. If a 
patient is very ill, the rule is to administer nourish- 
ment in small quantities and often. Sometimes a 
patient is too feeble to help himself to food, and then 
he must be fed by the nurse. When such is the case, 
she should be extremely careful, no matter what the 
pressure of other work may be, not to hurry him. 
Give him plenty of time, — first, that the food may re- 
main in the mouth long enough to be mixed with the 
saliva, for saliva is one of the digestive juices; and 
second, so that it may be thoroughly masticated and 
broken; otherwise it will be thrown into the stomach 
in large masses, and may not digest at all. 

The quantity of food given will always depend 
upon the condition of the person, and will conse- 
quently vary for each individual. Give rather too 
little than too much, with, of course, the understand- 
ing that there is always an abundance to be had. A 



SERVING 275 

little is often a challenge, especially to one of delicate 
appetite j a large quantity is always vulgar. It is 
much better to carry a second portion to one who 
needs it than to offer too much at first. 

No exact and definite directions can be given for 
the serving of special dishes, for a nurse's resources 
in the way of china, etc., are so uncertain; but a few 
hints in regard to some principles that, no matter 
what the circumstances are, never change may be 
found of service. 

For instance, water, lemonade, milk, milk-punch, 
and all other cold drinks are most healthful when 
cool, not ice-cold. Ice-cold water, ice-cold milk, and 
all chilled drinks are al tea t/s forbidden for both sick 
and well, except in fevers, in extremely hot weather, 
and in unusual cases, when only a few spoons of 
liquid are taken. Even in these cases it is a question 
whether cool liquids would not do as well. We all 
know the danger of taking a large quantity of ice- 
cold drink when overheated. Even death has re- 
sulted from it. 

Serve tea, coffee, cocoa, bouillon, broth, gruel, and 
all hot drinks in cups which are hot, not lukewarm. 
Soup as a part of a meal should be served in a cov- 
ered silver dish when practicable, for silver may be 
made very hot, and no other is so pretty. In lieu of 
silver use a covered china dish, or a bouillon-cup 
made hot in an oven beforehand. Remember that 
the warmth of all these foods is one of their valuable 
qualities. 

Beef-juice and beef-tea may be offered in a red 
wine-glass, to conceal the color, which is sometimes at 
first unpleasant to those unaccustomed to the use of 
rare beef ; but the taste of these is so acceptable and 
savory that, after taking a few spoons, the objec- 
tion vanishes. 



276 SERVING 

Cups and tumblers ought not to be filled to more 
than within a half inch of the top. The best argu- 
ment for this custom is, that it is considered good 
form ; but there is a good reason back of it, as is the 
case in most other established customs. If a cup be 
filled to the brim it cannot be moved without spilling 
the liquid over the outside ; this occasions wiping, 
which it is especially difficult to do, and waste of a 
certain portion of the contents j then it is not easy 
to drink from a cup so filled. 

Fruits, such as oranges, grapes, peaches, and toma- 
toes, should be served cool, but not cold or chilled. 
The ideal way to eat fruits is without artificial cool- 
ing. A peach is never so delicious as at the moment it 
is gathered from the tree, just ripe, and tomatoes 
have the finest flavor eaten directly off the vines ; but 
it is seldom that these fruits or others can be so ob- 
tained, and we, knowing that fruits do not keep well 
except in cool places, are apt to associate a certain 
degree of coolness with them. The objection to serv- 
ing fruits very cold is that, besides the fact that they 
are not as readily digested so, their delicate flavor 
is lost, for the cold contracts the sensitive papilla? of 
the tongue, and thus the power of tasting is tempo- 
rarily deadened. 

Oranges, peaches, and plums may be used uncooked, 
as they are extremely easy of digestion so, and also 
grapes, unless there is objection to the seeds, in 
which case they should be cooked, and the seeds 
strained out. Apples and pears are safer cooked j to- 
matoes may be eaten either way. 

Transparent jellies are pretty served in glass 
dishes, and ice-cream, sherbets, and ices in china 
saucers, or ice-cream dishes of pink, or other deli- 
cately warm colors. Ice-cream, uncolored, in shell 
pink, is much more attractive than it is in cold 






SERVING 277 

mauve or green. Water-ices, which usually have 
color of their own, may be served in dishes to match it. 
Raspberry or strawberry ice is lovely in dull rich red; 
apricot ice in yellow — that is, a certain shade of ecru 
which harmonizes with the color of the fruit — and 
pineapple and lemon ice in Dresden ware are very 
pretty. 

Eggs should be opened into a hot, though not very 
hot, egg-glass. It is the proper thing to do so even 
when a patient is well enough to open them for him- 
self, for, although the supply may have been obtained 
from the very best sources, there is always the risk 
that some of the eggs may be old, too old to be good. 1 

Oysters in the half-shell are served simply with salt, 
pepper, and lemon- juice, or horse-radish. A quarter 
or a half of a lemon is placed on the oyster-plate with 
the oysters, and after the salt and pepper are sprinkled 
on a few drops of lemon-juice are squeezed over each 
oyster, or a bit of horse-radish is placed on each. 

Broiled oysters may be served with a sauce of 
melted butter, seasoned with salt, pepper, and lemon- 
juice or vinegar. 

Toast is particularly acceptable with nearly all 
kinds of cooked oysters, and fancy shapes, such as 
tiny rounds, squares, and points, are excellent with 
stews, soups, and roasts, instead of crackers. 

Dry toast ought to be eaten directly off the toaster, 
and, except in serious illness, butter may be given 
with it. Orange, gooseberry, raspberry, and other 
marmalades, currant, apple, and grape jellies, and 
baked sweet apples or apple-sauce, are excellent with 
either dry or water toast. Cooked apples in any 
form are delicious with milk and cream toasts. 

i In England it is the custom to serve eggs in the shell, and it is 
considered bad form to open them, but in America the latter way is 
general ; for an invalid there is no question but that it is the most 
convenient way to do. 
19 



278 SERVING 

It is the fashion just now to serve junket, slip, 
soft custard, lemon cream, tapioca cream, and similar 
delicate desserts in cups and saucers, not glasses. 
The quainter the pattern of the china, the prettier 
the effect. 

A plan for a breakfast, to consist of a peach, rolled 
wheat porridge, beefsteak, baked potato, coffee, and 
toast : 

(1) Put the porridge, which should have been 
cooked the day before, on the fire to heat, and the 
potato into the oven to bake. 

• (2) Set some water to boil for the coffee, and the 
milk to heat to serve with it. 

(3) Trim the steak, which should be a small piece 
an inch thick, an inch and a half wide, and three or 
four inches long; cut the bread, and make a butter- 
ball by rolling a bit of butter between two spatters 
made for the purpose. 1 

(4) Set a plate, cup and saucer, and dishes for serv- 
ing the food, in the warming-oven to heat. 

(5) Arrange the tray with a fresh napkin, knife, 
fork, spoons, salt and pepper, fine granulated sugar 
and cold cream for the porridge, and some lumps of 
loaf sugar for the coffee. 

(6) Fifteen minutes before the potato is done make 
the coffee, and ten minutes later broil the steak; in 
the interim pare the peach, laying it open from the 
stone, and toast the bread. 

Now, if calculation as to the time has been well 
made, everything will be ready — the potato baked, 
the porridge steaming, the coffee cooked, and the 
steak and toast waiting in the oven. 

(7) Serve the fruit on a tiny fruit-plate, the por- 

i The spatters should he soaked in hotting water for a few minutes, 
and then in cold water, to prevent the sticking of the hutter. 



SERVING 279 

ridge in a hot saucer, and the coffee, together. When 
the fruit and porridge are finished, offer the potato, 
wrapped in a doily to keep it warm, the steak in a 
hot covered silver dish, and the toast on an individ- 
ual bread-plate. Or all may be served together when 
for any reason it seems best to do so : for instance, if 
the tray has to be carried a long distance, or up many 
flights of stairs. 

The above arrangement is simply beginning with 
the things which require the longest time, and then 
taking each in such order that all shall be finished at 
the same moment. 

By understanding the length of time required for 
each dish, there need be no hurrying, nor will any- 
thing be cooked too soon. 

Dinner should be planned in the same way, and 
also supper. Even when there is not much cooking to 
be done the same idea prevails — that is, to begin with 
whatever requires the longest time, and to do last 
those dishes which spoil by standing ; in other words, 
to be systematic, (1) because your meal is in better 
condition when so done, and (2) because it is easier 
for yourself. There then will be neither hurry nor 
worry, and work which ends with a satisfactory 
result is always a pleasure. 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDEEN 

There are three ways in which a child may be sup 
plied with food during its infancy: by its mother; 
by a substitute for its mother — a wet nurse ; and by 
artificial feeding. This chapter will treat only of the 
latter method. 

The child is fortunate whose mother can supply it 
with a sufficient quantity of wholesome milk. There 
is nothing more to be desired for it during the first 
ten or twelve months of its life. But often a mother, 
for one reason or another, is not able to nurse her 
child, and other means of feeding must be sought. 
In such cases, among the wealthier classes, a wet 
nurse is sometimes employed j but with the majority 
of people there is no alternative except artificial feed- 
ing. When this has been decided upon, the question 
naturally arises as to what shall be the best substi- 
tute for the natural nourishment of the child — moth- 
er's milk, which must always be taken as the perfect 
type of infants' food. 1 To this subject doctors and 
hygienists have given much attention for a long time. 

i It should not be inferred from this that mother's milk is the best 
under all circumstances. It not infrequently happens that a mother, 
disregarding all indications to the contrary, will continue to nurse her 
baby after it has become disastrous both to herself and the infant to do 
so. If a baby remains puny, and the mother is exhausted and languid 
without any known cause, it is the part of wisdom to call in the aid of 
a physician, and have the milk analyzed. Good and careful feeding is 
infinitely better than nursing a baby upon impoverished milk, even if 
the quantity seems sufficient. A mother, in nursing her child, should 
do so at stated regular intervals. If it is injurious for a grown person 
to eat at odd times all day long, it is far more injurious for an infant. 
It will not hurt a child to be occasionally hungry, or even to cry, 

280 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 281 

Many kinds of food preparations have been made and 
tested. The result has been that, almost without ex- 
ception, authorities agree that milk from healthy, 
well-fed cows, properly prepared, is the most valuable 
substitute for human milk that is at present known. 1 
The following analyses give the comparison be- 
tween cow's milk and human milk: 

Human Milk. Cow's Milk. 

Nitrogenous substances 2.35% 4.30% 

Fat 3.40% 3.80% 

Sugar 4.85% 3.70% 

Salts 20% 60% 

Water 89.20% 87.60% 2 

Cow's milk varies considerably in nutritive proper- 
ties, and for the growing infant who receives no other 
food it is extremely important that it be of the first 
quality. It should be tested in every possible way to 
enable one to form a correct estimate of its value, 
and unless unquestionably good should be rejected. 3 
When fresh from the cow, not more than two hours 
old, and of superior quality, it need not be sterilized, 
but should be put into perfectly cleansed and sterile 
vessels, 4 and kept in an ice-box, or refrigerator, at a 
temperature of 50° to 60° Fahr. 5 

When obliged to buy the ordinary milk of com- 
merce, select if possible that which is put up in glass 

whereas it will hurt it seriously and perhaps induce life-long dyspepsia 
if food is introduced into the stomach while there yet remains in it 
that previously taken in an undigested, or partly digested, condition. 
The cry which a young mother thinks indicates hunger, and hopes to 
allay by feeding, is often only a dyspeptic pain, which is increased by 
the very means she takes to lessen it. 

i The milk of goats and asses is said to be more easily digested than 
cow's milk, but is procurable only in exceptional cases. 

2 From Uffelmann's " Hygiene of the Child." 

3 See chapter on Milk. 

4 Vessels for holding milk may be made, sterile by boiling them in 
water for fifteen minutes. Glass is best. 

5 A low temperature retards the growth of micro-organisms. 



282 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 



jars. There are farmers who do this. Each jar is 
sealed, marked with the owner's name and address, 
and the date of sending. Such milk does not become 
contaminated with bad air in transit, cannot be tam- 
pered with by middlemen, and must be free from 
dirt, as it would show through the glass j each cus- 
tomer gets exactly a quart, with all the cream that 
belongs to it ; moreover, the owner, having attached 
his name, has thus put his reputation at stake, and 
is not likely to sell inferior milk. When this is not 
practicable, search for the best and cleanest dairy, and 
see that the milk is delivered as soon as possible after 
being received at the dairy. Milk should not be 
bought from small stores. 

The best milk comes from cows that have good 
pasturage, with clean running water, and that are fed 
in winter on dry fodder and grain, and not on en- 
silage and brewery waste. 

According to the reports of the American Public 
Health Association, one fifth of all the deaths among 
infants may be traced to the milk supply, and there 
is no doubt that most of the sickness of bottle-fed 
children, during the summer months, is directly due 
to the unhealthy condition of their food. 

It then becomes the imperative duty of every mother, 
nurse, or other person who has the care of children, to 
learn, if she does not already know, the simpler tests 
for milk, and something of the philosophy of the feed- 
ing of her charge. 1 When such knowledge is more 
general, and women are able to determine intelligently 
the quality of the milk which is offered them, then 
will milk-dealers be forced to cease mixing, adulter- 
ating, and otherwise tampering with the milk, which, 
as a general thing, is sold at the farms in excellent 
condition. 

l Test for reaction, fat, and specific gravity. See article on Milk. 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 283 

The first object is to secure a good quality of milk; 
then comes the consideration of how it shall be pre- 
pared: this must be in such manner as shall render it 
as nearly like human milk, in composition and diges- 
tibility, as possible. 

Comparison of the tables just given shows that cow's 
milk contains more nitrogenous matter and salts, and 
less sugar, than human milk. 1 By diluting with water 
to reduce the protein and salts, and adding sugar and 
a little cream, the proportions of these different sub- 
stances may be made to approximate those in moth- 
er's milk. In both the sugar is the same — lactose, or 
milk-sugar ; the fats are also much alike in each ; but 
the albuminous matter of cow's milk differs somewhat 
from that of human milk, particularly in the way in 
which it coagulates in the presence of acids. Human 
milk forms into small, light, feathery curds ; cow's 
milk into large, compact, not so easily digested 
masses. It is necessary, therefore, to seek the means 
for preventing the coagulation of milk in large curds 
in the stomach of the child — in other words, to so 
treat cow's milk that it shall coagulate more like 
human milk. This may be done in two ways : 

(1) By mixing into the milk some substance which 
shall separate the particles of albumen from each 
other, and so cause it to form into smaller masses. 

(2) By partial predigestion. 

To accomplish the first, it is necessary to use some 
diluting substance of a harmless nature; if it be nu- 
tritious, so much the better. For this, Mellin's food, 
barley-water, veal broth, lime-water, and gelatin are 
recommended. 

Mellin's food is a partially predigested grain, in such 

1 The following mineral substances occur in both cow's and woman's 
milk : potassa, soda, lime, magnesia, iron, phosphoric acid, sulphuric- 
acid, and chlorin, 



284 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

a condition that it can be assimilated by the infant; 
barley-water is valuable for its potash salts, in which 
cow's milk is deficient, and which the growing babe 
needs; veal broth is rich in lime; and lime-water 
neutralizes the acid of the gastric juice, so that milk 
is not acted upon so strongly, and consequently forms 
into a lighter curd. 

The second method is that of partial predigestion, 
and is accomplished by the use of peptonizing agents, 
among which Fairchild's peptogenic milk-powder is 
good (directions for its use will be given later). On 
account of the expense of these preparations it is not 
probable that they will come into general use, except 
in cases of sickness. 

It is therefore evident that dependence must be 
placed almost entirely upon attenuants to render the 
casein of cow's milk more easily digestible. Probably 
for this Mellin's food is as good, if not better, than 
any other of the recommended preparations. It is not 
injurious, is nutritious in itself, and is a good diluting 
agent, causing milk to form into looser curds than 
it would otherwise do, and it contains sufficient sugar 
to require no further addition of this substance. 

Now arises the question whether milk shall be 
sterilized for infants 7 feeding. The weight of evi- 
dence seems to be as follows : if it is possible to see 
the conditions under which the cows live, and to know 
that they are unquestionably good, that the animals 
are in perfect health, that the milk is drawn from 
cleansed udders into cleansed vessels by clean hands, 
kept in a cool place, and used fresh, then it is prob- 
ably wise not to sterilize it. All milk otherwise 
obtained should be made sterile before using, and 
as soon as possible after milking. Looking to the 
standard^- human milk — there are no organisms in 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 285 

it. That alone is sufficient reason why cow's milk 
should be freed from them. 1 

Again, most bottle-fed children do well during the 
cold weather of autumn and winter ; in summer the 
mortality is very great among them, especially in 
the poorer districts of large cities. It is well known 
that the chances for life with children nourished by 
mother's milk are greater than with those artificially 
fed. Why should this be ? There is no doubt that it 
is owing to the presence in cow's milk of extraneous 
substances, the products of bacterial growth — prod- 
ucts which are often absolute poisons; and it is 
highly probable that cholera infantum, in a vast ma- 
jority of cases, may be traced to the action of such 
poisons. 

Under favorable conditions of temperature, such as 
prevail in the warm months of summer and early 
autumn, micro-organisms grow with almost incom- 
prehensible rapidity in any substance which is suita- 
ble food for them. Milk is such a substance j and, as 
bacteria multiply with wonderful rapidity, millions 
forming in a few hours in every thimbleful, 2 it is 
perfectly evident that they must produce something. 
This something may or may not be of a harmful na- 
ture, depending upon what species of organism pro- 
duces it. I have no evidence at hand to show what is 
the nature of the product of any one organism which 
finds a home in milk; but there are instances on 
record where the nature of the product of certain bac- 
teria is known : for example, the diphtheria bacillus. 
This little rod, growing upon the outside of the ton- 

i It is worthy of notice, in this connection, that children have been 
known to be made ill by drinking water which has stood for a length 
of time— such water containing great numbers of bacteria, but none 
of the so-called disease-producing organisms. The same water, when 
boiled, produced no ill effects. 

2 Stated by Sedgwick. 



286 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

sils in the human throat, produces a most virulent 
poison, which, taken up by the circulation, pervades 
the whole body, and often so enfeebles its functions 
as to destroy it. 1 

Reasoning from analogy, it is not impossible to 
suppose that other organisms may produce substances 
of a similar character, poisonous in their effects, and 
which, when taken into the alimentary canal, may 
produce very grave digestive disorders. 2 

Further, bacteria, by their multiplication, use some 
of the constituents of milk for their food, thus chang- 
ing its composition. It is very important to prevent 
this growth, or, in case it has begun, to check it before 
it has rendered the milk unwholesome food. Hence 
the necessity of sterilizing immediately all milk which 
is not received directly from the cow. Besides, cows 
are often infected with tuberculosis, foot-and-mouth 
disease, splenic fever, pneumonia, and other danger- 
ous disorders. Their milk may be a direct cause of 
infection. When it is sterilized there is less danger 
from it; but even then it is not, of course, a wholesome 
food, because of the poisons which may be produced 
in the animal during the progress of the disease, and 
because a sick and weakened cow cannot give whole- 
some milk. 3 

In many cities, through the influence of children's 
hospitals and sanitariums, the knowledge and methods 

i Welsh. 

2 since writing the above I have learned that Prof. Vaughan has 
isolated a poisonous matter — the product of the growth of certain 
organisms which multiply readily in milk — which caused active vom- 
iting, purging, collapse, and death when injected into the lower animals. 

3 In England and America many cases of scarlatina, typhoid fever, 
and diphtheria have been traced to the milk supply. But there is no 
satisfactory evidence that those diseases were transmitted from the 
cow ; more probably the milk, which is an especially good nutritive me- 
dium for bacteria, became infected after leaving the cow. In October, 
1891, an epidemic of diphtheria prevailed in Melrose, Mass. Thirty-three 
cases were reported. On investigation it was found that every case 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 287 

of sterilizing milk for infants' food are gradually 
spreading. 

Circular wire frames, made something like casters, 
and fitted with eight bottles, each holding enough 
milk for one feeding, may be bought for the purpose 
of sterilizing at almost any pharmacy. The frame is 
to be set in a kettle with water in the bottom, which 
on boiling produces steam, the heat of which does 
the sterilizing. 1 This is an easy method. Another 
good way is to sterilize at a lower temperature for a 
longer time, as less change is produced in the con- 
stituents of the milk by the lower degree of heat. 
This may be easily done by immersing the bottles in 
water at 190° Fahr., and maintaining that tempera- 
ture for an hour. 2 

Care of Feeding-bottles. Great care must be taken 
in cleansing feeding-bottles. When they can be 

could be traced to the milk supply. The farm from which it came was 
situated In an adjoining town, and the family of the dealer had been 
afflicted with diphtheria, two of the children having died. The use of 
the milk was, of course, promptly stopped. 

1A simple and inexpensive apparatus for sterilizing milk consists 
of a covered tin kettle ten inches in height by eight inches in diam- 
eter, a wire basket, which tits easily into the kettle, supplied with 
supports or legs projecting one and a half inches from the bottom, one 
dozen eight-ounce nursing-bottles, and a bundle of fresh cotton wad- 
ding. The whole apparatus, costing about $1.25, is kept in most drug 
stores. 

Milk for twenty-fbtir hours' use is properly sweetened and diluted with 
water in a clean pitcher, and as much of this as the child will take at 
one feeding is poured into each bottle, and the bottle stopped with cot- 
ton wadding, which should fit only moderately tight in the neck of the 
bottle. The kettle is filled to the depth of one half to one inch with wa- 
ter, the basket containing the bottles placed in it, the kettle covered and 
placed over a fire until the steam comes out from the sides of the top for 
half an hour, when the basket containing the bottles should be removed 
and put in a cool place. When the milk is to be used, it should be heated 
by placing a bottle in warm water for a few minutes. The cotton is 
then removed, and a sterilized nipple attached. After the feeding the 
bottle is cleansed and kept in an inverted position until used again 
The above directions are those of Dr. Booker, specialist of children's 
diseases, Johns Hopkins Hospital. 

2 In the Walker-Gordon Milk Laboratory, in Boston, milk is sterilized 
at 175° to 180° Fahr. for fifteen minutes, and it is claimed that this tern* 



288 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

washed immediately after using, it is easy to make 
them perfectly clean ; but when this is impracticable 
they should be put to soak in cold water, then washed 
with hot soap-suds, and last boiled for ten minutes in 
clear water. If flecks dry on the inside, put a tea- 
spoon of rice, or coarse salt, into the bottle with a lit- 
tle water, and shake well until all is removed. Never 
use shot : it might cause lead poisoning. 

Plain rubber nipples alone should be used, never 
the tube attachment. The nipples should be washed 
clean and dried after each nursing. Before again 
using the nipple it should be put into boiling water 
for ten minutes, and only the rim of it should be 
touched in handling. The nipple should never be put 
into the mouth of another person to test the milk. 

Condensed Milk. When a large percentage of the 
water of milk is evaporated, and sugar added, a thick 
syrup is formed, known as condensed milk. 

It is made extensively in Switzerland and America. 
When sealed air-tight in cans it will keep indefinitely. 

Its average composition — a mean of 41 analyses 
by Prof. Leeds — is as follows : 

Water 30.34% 

Fat 12.10% 

Milk-sugar 16.62% 

Cane-sugar 22.26% 

Albuminoids 16.07% 

Ash : 2.61% 

Total, 100.00 

perature gives the best results for milk to be used within twenty-four 
hours. If the milk has to he kept a longer time, a higher temperature 
is necessary, as only the bacteria and not the spores are destroyed by 
175° Fahr. 

Machines are in use in France which will heat great quantities of milk 
to about 155° Fahr. and then rapidly cool it. Not all, but nearly all, 
forms of bacteria likely to be found in milk are destroyed at the tem- 
perature of 155°, and the good flavor of the milk is not injured. Such 
milk is known as Pasteurised milk. 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDEEN 289 

Owing to the additional sugar it is impossible to 
dilute it so that the protein and sugar shall approach 
the standard of human milk. 

Children fed with it are plump, but have soft flesh; 
they are large, but not strong, and lack the power of 
endurance and resistance to disease. Their teeth 
come late, and they are very likely to have rickets.* 
This is enough to indicate that it is not a proper 
food upon which to feed a child exclusively. 

Condensed milk is valuable in emergencies or in 
traveling, and may also be used occasionally when for 
any reason the milk supply fails. It has the advan- 
tage of being free from ferments and easily kept. 

There are physicians who recommend the use of 
condensed milk, and no doubt, compared with the 
germ-laden, watery fluid called milk, obtainable in 
the poorer sections of large cities, it is infinitely bet- 
ter. It should always be diluted with at least ten 
times its bulk of water. 

Preserved Milk. Preserved milk is milk which has 
been condensed and canned without the addition of 
sugar. It would be a valuable food for children 
were it not that it is expensive, and will keep but a 
few hours after the can is opened. By sterilizing it in 
flasks with narrow necks, plugged with cotton, it may 
be kept as other milk is for an indefinite time. As 
soon as the can is opened, the contents should be 
poured into a glass or earthen vessel, for, on expos- 
ure of the milk to the air, chemical action takes place 
with the tin. 2 

Farinaceous Foods. There are many farinaceous 
forms of food prepared for the use of infants and 
children. Probably the most valuable of them are 

i See the works of Drs. Louis Starr, Uffelmann, and Jacobi. 

2 The amount of condensation in preserved milk may he easily ascer- 
tained by noting the amount of water which it is necessary to add in 
order to make its specific gravity equal to that of ordinary milk. 



290 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

those made according to the Liebig process. The 
starch of the grain from which such foods are pre- 
pared is, in the process of manufacture, changed into 
soluble dextrine, or sugar (glucose), by the action of 
the diastase of malt: the very thing which an infant 
cannot do. 

When we consider that the digestion of starch in 
the alimentary canal consists of this change into 
glucose, and that it is effected principally by the 
saliva and the pancreatic juice, the significance of 
the value of such foods will be seen. 

It is also well to bear in mind that neither of these 
functions (the secretion of saliva and pancreatic juice) 
is developed in an infant until it enters the third 
month of its life, and then but very imperfectly. 
That alone shows the necessity of excluding all starch 
from its food up to that age. 

Mellin's food and malted milk are prepared accord- 
ing to the Liebig process. In them the starch has 
been converted into soluble matter by the action of 
the ferment of malt. It is really a partial prediges- 
tion. Mellin's food does not contain milk. 

The following analysis of Mellin's food is one made 
by Professor Fresenius, of Wiesbaden, Germany: 

Non-nitrogenous substances soluble in water 69. 38% 

Non-nitrogenous substances insoluble in water . ... 3.18% 

Total carbohydrates 72.56% 

Nitrogenous substances soluble in water 4.69% 

Nitrogenous substances insoluble in water 5.06% 

Total albuminoids 9.75% 

Total salts, mostly phosphoric acid, car- 
bonic acid, and potassa 4.37% 

Total moisture 13.32% 

Cane sugar, none. Beaction, alkaline. 



Woman's 


Cow's 


Milk. 


Milk. 


4.00% 


3.30% 


2.50% 


3.50% 


6.50% 


5.00% 


.50% 


•70% 


86.50% 


87.50% 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 291 

Comparative analysis of MelhVs food, prepared for 
use, with that of woman's milk and cow's milk. 



Constituents. M Food. 8 

Fat 2.36% 

Albuminoids 2.83% 

Carbohydrates 6.81% 

Salts and inorganic matter . . .74% 

Water 87.26% 

Cellulose A trace. 

Cane-sugar None. 

Starch None. 

Dr. A. Stutzer, Bonn, Germany. 



This analysis shows that Mellin's food bears com- 
parison with milk. It is easily digested, and as an 
attenuant for milk may be used without harm during 
the early months of life, but it should not be used 
to the exclusion of milk for more than a few days at 
a time, and then only when milk is not retained by 
the stomach. 

Later it is doubtless a valuable addition to the regu- 
lar daily food of the child. 

Malted milk is made from selected grain and des- 
iccated or dried milk. To prepare it for the infant 
it needs only the addition of water. It is probably 
one of the best substitutes for milk, but should not 
be used for any length of time when it is possible to 
get good milk. 

The starch of grains may be converted into dex- 
trine and glucose by the action of heat as well as by 
the action of diastase, so that when flour is subjected 
to a certain temperature, and for a certain time, this 
change is produced. 

Nestle's food, Imperial Granum, Ridge's food, and 
some others are made very carefully from selected 



292 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

wheat by this process. Nestle's food contains dried 
milk. 

These foods are all valuable when made into gruel 
or porridge, but should be used very sparingly under 
the age of twelve months, and then only as attenuants 
for milk, not as substitutes for it. 

Dr. Mary Putnam Jacobi, editor of " Domestic Hy- 
giene of the Child," by Uffelmann (a translation), in 
speaking of the value of the various preparations of 
infants' food on the market, says : " There is not the 
slightest reason to prefer them to milk or its prepara- 
tions, except that the latter requires more care ; and 
for any intelligent and affectionate mother this rea- 
son is quite insufficient. . . . During the first year 
the baby is building up tissues and organs that are 
to last him throughout life ; and these will work well 
or ill according to the degree of perfection and pre- 
cision of structure which they attain at the begin- 
ning. And this depends to an immense extent upon 
the suitability of the food, not only to be digested, 
but to be absorbed, and then to be assimilated and 
organized. 

" So mysterious are the properties of the molecules 
of albumen and fat, when once they have been thrown 
into the whirl of the living organism, that we must 
strive to deviate as little as possible from the exact 
forms given to us in nature, if only because we do 
not know what remote effects might result from the 
deviations. If nature provides the albumen of milk 
and a living fluid, we cannot expect the same results 
from any other albumen, or from long dead organic 
matter, as condensed milk." 

The farinaceous foods have value, but they cannot 
replace good milk, which should be almost the sole 
food of the child to at least the age of ten months, 
and the principal nutrient to the age of two years. 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 293 

When a baby is nursed, and its mother has an 
abundance of milk, it takes nothing else during the 
first ten or twelve months of life. When a baby is 
artificially fed, this fact should be borne in mind. 
The important thing is to attain as nearly as pos- 
sible to the standard that nature has set. 

Biedert's cream mixture and the whey mixture are 
valuable for young infants and those which for any 
reason do not thrive on milk. 

Amount for Each Meal. A child is nourished, not by 
what it swallows, but by what it digests. Giving 
too much or too concentrated milk is very unwise, 
for the delicate system cannot manage it, and too 
frequently the meal becomes a source of pain rather 
than of strength. Each individual babe will re- 
quire a little different treatment in this respect from 
every other. 

In general, for the first six weeks from two to four 
tablespoons at a feeding may be given; from that age 
to six months, from four to eight tablespoons, gradu- 
ally increasing the amount to twelve tablespoons at 
one year. 

Dilution. Cow's milk is more easily digested when 
diluted with water, and we are more likely to dilute 
too little than too much. The amount of water used 
should vary with the age and strength of digestion 
of the child. As a rule the new-born infant should 
have two parts water to one of milk; at four months 
equal parts of milk and water; at ten months one 
part water and two parts milk. When digestion is 
particularly feeble, it may be necessary to dilute milk 
with six or eight times its bulk of water. 

Manner of Giving. It is best to give milk from a 
bottle so constructed that suction is necessary, for it 
induces the flow of the digestive juices. Use the 
plain rubber nipple ; those with tube attachments 



294 THE FEEDING OF CHILDBEN 

which extend into the bottle are to be avoided, on ac- 
count of the difficulty of making them perfectly clean 
inside. Cultures from these tubes always give large 
numbers of bacteria, as do also those made from the 
nipples, unless they are boiled. 

The intervals of feeding will vary somewhat with 
the age of the child. Once in two or two and a half 
hours during the day for the first six months, and 
every three hours from the sixth to the twelfth month, 
is the general rule. 

The temperature of the meal should be 100° Fahr. 

A babe needs less variety in its food than older 
children, and they in turn require less than grown 
persons ; but both must have a certain proportion of 
the five essential food principles. 

There is an impression in the minds of many that 
children should not have fat. This has perhaps 
sprung from the fact that mother's milk has a watery, 
thin appearance. It seems not rich; nevertheless it 
has a due proportion of fat, and it is extremely im- 
portant that this be maintained when cow's milk is 
diluted, for this cream is the best addition. 

Fat is needed not only for the growth of brain and 
nerves, which is very rapid in children, but also for 
the perfect formation of other tissues. 

The following table is that given by Dr. Louis 
Starr as a guide for feeding : 



General Eules for Feeding. 

j Intervals of Average Ain't Average Am' t 

ffe " Feeding. eacli Meal. in 24 hours. 

First week 2 hours 2 tablespoons 1£ pints 

Second to sixth week % hours 3 - 4 tablespoons li- 2 pints 

Sixth week to sixth month. 3 hours 6-8 tablespoons 2\- 3 pints 

At six months 3 hours 12 tablespoons 4£ pints 

At ten months 3 hours 16 tablespoons 5 pints 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 295 

For the First Week ; One Feeding 

1 Tablespoon of whey. 1 f Tablespoon of cream. 

1 Tablespoon of water. i Teaspoon of sugar. 

Or Biedert's cream mixture : 

1 Tablespoon of cream. 3 Tablespoons of water. 

£ Teaspoon of milk-sugar. 

Or, 

1 Tablespoon of milk. 3 Tablespoons of water. 

■J- Teaspoon of milk-sugar. 

If it* is desirable to make at once a sufficient quan- 
tity of Biedert's cream mixture for several feedings, 
the above rule multiplied by eight will furnish enough 
for eight bottles, and is as follows : one cup of cream, 
three cups of boiling water, and one tablespoon of 
milk-sugar. Mix all together; put the mixture in 
equal portions into eight feeding-bottles, and plug 
each with cotton. Either sterilize it or put it imme- 
diately on ice to keep. 



After the First Week, and Until the Sixth Week 

Use either the cream mixture, the whey mixture, or 
the following : 

2 Tablespoons of cow's milk. 
4 Tablespoons of water. 
1 Teaspoon of Melliu's food. 
i Teaspoon of milk-sugar. 

i To prepare whey : l pint of milk mixed with 1 teaspoon of liquid 
rennet. Set in a warm place until the curd is formed; then break the 
curd and put it into a cloth or a wire strainer to draiu. 



296 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

From the Sixth Week to the Sixth Month 

Water and milk in eqnal quantities, with a little 
cream and milk-sugar, and some attenuant, such as 
Mellin's food or barley jelly. 1 

2 Tablespoons of cow's milk. 
2 Tablespoons of water. 
1 Tablespoon of cream. 2 
1 Teaspoon of Mellin's food. 
f Teaspoon of sugar. 

The above proportion to be maintained, but the 
amount to be varied according to the age of the babe. 

If at any time this disagrees, use instead Biedert's 
cream mixture or the whey mixture. When both of 
these fail it may be necessary to peptonize the food. 

To peptonize milk : 

No. 1 

2 Tablespoons of milk. 

2 Tablespoons of water. 

1 Tablespoon of cream. 

1 Small measure of peptogenic milk powder. 

Put all into a clean porcelain-lined saucepan and 
heat it, stirring slowly until the mixture boils: this 
should not require more than ten minutes. 

No. 2 

A special preparation for sick or feeble infants, or 
those suffering from indigestion. 

i To make barley jelly : Boil two tablespoons of pearl barley in a 
pint of water for two hours. Strain. It will form a tender jelly. 

2 Condensed cream may be used when other cream cannot be ob- 
tained. 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 297 

2 Tablespoons of milk. 

2 Tablespoons of water. 

1 Tablespoon of cream. 

1 Small measure of peptogenic milk powder. 

Put all into a bottle, shake it well, place it in a 
bath or kettle of hot water of a temperature of 115° 
Fahr. (so hot that the hand cannot be borne in it 
long without discomfort), and keep it at that tem- 
perature for exactly thirty minutes; then pour it into 
a saucepan, and heat quickly to the boiling point. 
By this method a very thorough predigestion takes 
place. The process should be stopped before the bit- 
ter taste is developed. 

From the Sixth to the Tenth Month 

Increase the proportion of milk and of Mellin's food, 
or other attenuant used. 1 

4 Tablespoons of cow's milk. 
3 Tablespoons of water. 
1£ Teaspoons of cream. 
1 Tablespoon of Mellin's food. 
i Teaspoon of milk-sugar. 

Boil the water, then add the milk, Mellin's food, 
cream, and sugar, or put all together in a feeding-bot- 
tle, place in a kettle of water heated to 190° Fahr., 
and keep it at that temperature for one hour. 2 This 
amount is only a general rule, and may, of course, 
be varied according to the age and individual need of 
the child. The proportion of the ingredients should, 
however, not be changed. 

i Malted milk, Nestles food, Ridge's food, Imperial Granum, or bar- 
ley-flour, may be used as attenuants. 

2 Enough for the whole day may be made by multiplying the rule by 
eight, dividing the quantity into eight bottles, and sterilizing all at 
once. Keep in a cool place until needed. 



298 THE FEEDING OF CHILDEEN 

From the Tenth to the Twelfth Month 

6 Tablespoons of cow's milk. 

3 Tablespoons of water. 

1J Tablespoons of cream. 

1 or 2 Tablespoons of Mellin's food. 

1 Teaspoon of milk-sugar. 1 

Mellin's Food with Condensed Milk. Although, as 
has been previously stated, condensed milk is not a 
proper food for children, there are times when it may 
be necessary to use it: for instance, in traveling, or 
when the daily supply of milk for any reason fails. 

The usual mixture of condensed milk given to ba- 
bies is one part of milk to twelve parts of water, the 
analysis 2 of which shows the fat and casein to be in 
too small proportions. If more condensed milk be 
added, the sugar will be increased too much ; but by 
increasing the water, and using Mellin's food and 
cream, a very good mixture may be obtained. The 
following is recommended : 

1 Teaspoon condensed milk. 
1 Tablespoon of Mellin's food. 
8 Tablespoons of water (1 cup). 
1 Teaspoon of cream. 

Boil the water, then add the condensed milk, Mel- 
lin's food, and cream in the order in which they are 
mentioned, stirring until all is dissolved. 

i Milk-sugar may be obtained without difficulty, and always, at a 
pharmacy. It is better for infants than cane-sugar, because it is 
a little easier of digestion. 

2 Water 92.60% 

Fat 1.00% 

Casein 84% 

Sugar 5.40% 

Ash 16% 

Dr. Meigs. 



THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 299 

Nothing should be used during the first twelve 
months except liquid food, and that must not be of 
too great density. 

Avoid any food which contains cellulose, or starch 
as such. 1 Cellulose is but imperfectly if at all digested 
by grown persons; and starch, not being a natural 
kind of nourishment for an infant, is extremely liable 
to ferment and cause serious digestive disturbances. 

It should be remembered that, although the chief 
function of a babe is to eat, sleep, and grow, its 
stomach cannot work all the time, and, consequently, 
the wise plan is to feed it only at regular intervals. 

The best proof that a child is doing well is increase 
of weight, a healthy appearance, and lack of fretful- 
ness. Sometimes, when restless, it is only a drink of 
water that it needs, as children suffer much from thirst 
in warm weather. 



From the Twelfth to the Eighteenth Month 

Continue with milk, undiluted with water, as the 
principal food. Use with it Mellin's food as before, 
Nestle's food, Ridge's food, Imperial Granum, barley 
flour and other cereal foods, soft custard, soft- 
cooked eggs, thoroughly baked bread heated in milk, 
and cracker-crumbs boiled in water, with milk 
added. 

After Eighteen Months 

The same diet as for the previous six months, with 
the addition q£ scraped or pounded chicken, mutton, 
or beef; mashed baked potatoes with beef -juice poured 

i Although Mellin' 8 food is made from grain, the starch in it has 
been changed in the process of manufacture into easily assimilated 
dextrine and sugar. 



300 THE FEEDING OF CHILDREN 

over; toasted bread or toasted crackers rolled into 
crumbs, and soaked in milk or broth; junket, and 
plain, simple puddings, such as cream-of-rice, tapioca, 
and arrowroot. 

A diet similar to this should be the chief food to 
the seventh year. It may be varied by farina, wheat- 
germ, and other grain mushes, dried rusk and milk, 
or Zwieback 1 and milk, sponge cake with cream or 
milk, snow-pudding, and other wholesome and deli- 
cate desserts, and cooked fruits. 

Foods to be Carefully Avoided. Veal, pork in any 
form except bacon, 2 highly seasoned stews, curries, 
canned meats or dried meats in any form, baked 
beans, fruit cake, also all cakes or gingerbread made 
with so-called " cooking-butter" or with common lard, 
raw fruits, lobsters and crabs, new potatoes, berries, 
and cabbage. 

i Zwieback is a slightly sweetened and dried bread, which may be 
bought at any grocer's. It is like dried rusk. 

2 Bacon is very easy of digestion, and is a valuable form of fat for 
children four or five years old. Given with bread or potatoes, it will 
often be eaten when butter is refused. 



DISTRICT NURSING 

In England and in some parts of America district 
nursing, or nursing among the very poor of certain 
sections of a city, is an established part of a nurse's 
work. Her duties are to go from house to house 
among the sick, to administer medicine and food, 
and to make the surroundings of her patient com- 
fortable. 

There is no way in which one may reach the hearts 
and sympathies of the poor so quickly as by helping 
them to, or showing them how to do for themselves, 
those things which they think they need. 

Their first consideration is for the immediate ne- 
cessities of life — food, clothing, and shelter. Their 
days are spent in a struggle with the world for tnese — 
too often an unequal struggle, in which the world 
conquers. A nurse, or any other person who can gain 
admission to their homes and sympathies, may help 
them in many ways as no other can. Great good 
may be done by teaching them economical and simple 
methods of preparing their food, which frequently is 
cooked both badly and wastefully. 

A nurse doing district nursing, besides adminis- 
tering medicine and making her patient generally 
comfortable, will inevitably and naturally turn to 
the preparation of some form of nourishment for 
him. If she can make it acceptably with the mate- 
rials and cooking utensils at hand, or is able to ask 
for that which is within the means of the family, or 

301 



302 DISTRICT NURSING 

to direct the buying of it, she will add greatly to the 
comfort of the household. 

The object of this chapter is not, however, to deal 
with cooking for the sick. That will be left entirely 
to the judgment of the nurse, who is supposed to 
have studied the subject as a part of her training. 
But it has occurred to the author that a nurse doing 
district nursing would often find the opportunity to 
help the families of her patients, and that often such 
help would need to be given in order to prevent actual 
suffering. Especially would this be true if it were 
the mother of a family who was ill, and there was no 
one- to prepare food for the father and children, who 
must be fed. Usually there is a child, either boy or 
girl, who is old enough to learn if there is some one 
to teach. 

The following pages have been written for the pur- 
pose of suggesting, to such nurses as are disposed to 
do good in this way, some easily made and economical 
dishes which are really both palatable and nutritious. 
A few directions about building a fire, washing dishes, 
sweeping, etc., will be given, and then some bills of 
fare with recipes adapted for the use of people of 
small means, and taken for the most part from the 
Lomb Prize Essay by Mary H. Abel, entitled " Prac- 
tical, Sanitary, and Economic Cooking/ 7 and published 
by the American Public Health Association, 1890. 

Permission to use these recipes has been graciously 
granted by Mrs. Abel, and the American Public 
Health Association, through Mr. Lomb. 

To Make a Fire. First, clear the stove of ashes and 
cinders, then put in wood-shavings, or twisted news- 
paper 5 over this foundation lay small pieces of wood, 
crossed, so as to leave air-spaces for draft, then larger 
pieces of wood, and lastly two or three fire-shovels 
of coal. Light the kindling from the bottom of the 



DISTRICT NURSING 303 

grate, and let it burn for a while before putting on 
more coal; remember that it is the heat from the 
burning wood which ignites the coal, and if it does 
not burn it is because there is not wood enough to 
produce sufficient heat to start the union between the 
combustible part of the coal — carbon chiefly — and 
the oxygen of the air. Add coal a little at a time, 
thus keeping a fresh fire. 

After the fire is well started regulate the dampers 
often, to economize as much as possible the consump- 
tion of coal. Keep them partially or wholly closed, 
unless a hot fire is needed for some purpose. The 
cinders left from an old fire should be sifted and re- 
burued. Many dollars' worth of coal may be saved 
in a year by giving attention to the drafts of a stove. 

To Wash Dishes. Mixing-bowls, double boilers, and 
all dishes which for any reason have food clinging to 
them, should be put to soak in cold water as soon as 
used. If this has not been done, attend to it before 
making other arrangements for washing the dishes. 
See then that the dish-pan or tub, dish-cloths, and 
sink are perfectly clean ; if not, make them so with 
hot water and soap. Wash the dishes in hot soapy 
water, not hot water alone, even if they are not 
greasy, and rinse them in a pan of clear hot water. 
Take glassware, silver, and china first, then steel 
knives and forks, granite- ware, kettles, tins, etc. 
When the dishes are finished, wash thoroughly and 
dry, or put to dry, both the wiping-towels and the 
dish-cloths; unless they are white, clean, and sweet 
when done, boil them in clear soapy water until they 
become so, changing it frequently if it looks dark. 

Sweeping and Dusting. Sweep slowly and carefully, 
holding the broom close to the floor, so that the dust 
shall not be thrown into the air. Burn the dirt; never 
allow it to be thrown into a box or into the coal-hod. 



304 DISTKICT NURSING 

Dusting should be done with a damp cloth, wiping 
up the dust, not brushing it into the air, from which 
it will settle upon some other object. When you have 
finished, wash the duster and hang it to dry. Never 
use a feather duster. With it one simply brushes the 
dust from one place only to have it settle in another. 



BILLS OF FARE 

Mrs. Abel says, in her chapter headed " Bills of 
Fare": " The following bills of fare are made out for 
a family of six persons, consisting of a workingman, 
two women, and three children between the ages of 
six and fifteen. 

"The amount of food, and the proportion in which 
the great food principles are represented, approximate 
to that which is demanded by standard dietaries for 
such a family. . . . 

" To keep us in health and in working order, we 
ought to have a certain amount of what is best fur- 
nished by meat, eggs, milk, and other animal products, 
and we must also have fats, as well as what is given 
us in grains and vegetables." The following bills of 
fare are made up with this object in view : 

For a family of six; average price, seventy-eight 
cents per day, or thirteen cents per person. 

SATURDAY, MAY 

Breakfast. Dinner. Supper. 

Soda-biscuit. Bread Soup. Browned Flour Soup 

Sugar-syrup. Beef -neck Stew. with Fried Bread. 

Coffee. Noodles. Toast and Cheese. 

Cream-of-rice Pud- 
ding. 

The recipe for Soda-biscuit will be found on page 242. 

Bread Soup. Ingredients, dry bread broken in small 

bits, water, salt, pepper, onion, and a little fat. Soak 



DISTRICT NURSING 305 

the bread in the water for a few minutes. Fry the 
onion, sliced, in the fat, and add it to the soup, with 
the salt and pepper. 

Or, use milk instead of water, and toasted or fried 
bread. Boil slowly for five minutes to perfectly soften 
the bread. 

Beef-neck stew, page 186. 

Noodles. Ingredients, three eggs, three tablespoons 
of milk or water, one teaspoon of salt, and flour. 

Make a hole in the middle of the flour, put in the 
other ingredients, and work to a stiff dough, then cut 
it into four strips. Knead each till fine grained, roll 
out as thin as possible, and lay the sheet aside to dry. 
When all are rolled, begin with the first, cut it into 
four equal pieces, lay the pieces together, one on top 
of another, and shave off very fine, as 3 T ou would 
cabbage ; pick the shavings apart with floured hands 
and let them dry a little. 

To use. Boil the strips a few at a time in salted 
water, taking them out with a skimmer, and keeping 
them warm. Strew over them bread crumbs fried in 
butter, or use like macaroni. 

These noodles will keep indefinitely when dried 
hard. Therefore, when eggs are cheap, they may be 
made and laid up for the winter. The water in which 
they are boiled is the basis of noodle soup. It needs 
only the addition of a little butter, a teaspoon of 
chopped parsley, and a few of the cooked noodles. 

Cream-of-rice Pudding, page 206. 

Browned Flour Soup. 

2 Tablespoons of butter or fat. 
i Cup of flour. 
2 Pints of water. 
1 Pint of milk. 
1 Teaspoon of salt. 



306 DISTBICT NURSING 

Cook the flour brown, in the fat over a slow fire, or 
in an oven. Add slowly the water and other ingre- 
dients. Serve with fried bread. 

Toast and Cheese. Toast some slices of white or 
Graham bread, arrange them in a platter, and pour 
over sufficient salted water to soften them. Grate over 
enough old cheese to cover the toast. Set it in the 
oven to melt, and place the slices together as sand- 
wiches. This is the simplest form of " Welsh Rarebit." 





SUNDAY, MAY 




Hreakfast. 

Milk Toast. 

Coffee. 


Dinner. 

Beef Stew. 

Creamed Potatoes. 

Dried Apple Pie. 

Bread and Cheese. 

Corn Coffee. 


Supper. 

Noodle Soup. 

Broiled Herring. 

Bread. 

Tea. 



Milk Toast, page 130. Beef Stew, page 186. Creamed 
Potatoes, page 166. 

Dried Apple Pie. Make a crust in the following 
manner : One quart of flour, one teaspoon of salt, one 
tablespoon of butter or lard, or butter and suet, one 
scant pint of sweet milk, or water, with one teaspoon 
of soda and two of cream of tartar, or three teaspoons 
of baking powder. 

Sift the flour, salt, cream of tartar, and soda to- 
gether twice, jjut it into a chopping- tray, and chop 
in the shortening, which should be cold and hard, till 
all is fine and well mixed. Now add the milk a little 
at a time, still mixing with the chopping-knife. Turn 
the dough on to a molding-board, and roll it out 
quickly. When half an inch thick, bake in a sheet or 
cut it into rounds, and bake in layer cake tins. 

When done, split it in- two, and spread each half 
with dried apples, stewed with a little lemon-peel 



DISTRICT NURSING 307 

and sugar. Lay the two pieces together, and eat 
while warm. 

Any other fruit may be used in the same way, and 
if a richer crust is wanted, two tablespoons of fat in- 
stead of one may be used. 

Corn Coffee. Roast common field corn as brown as 
possible without burning. Grind coarsely, and steep 
like coffee. Add milk and sugar, and you will find it 
a delicious drink. 

Noodle Soup, page 305. 

MONDAY, MAY 

Breakfast. Dinner. Supper. 

Oatmeal Mush, with Pea Soup. Bread Pancakes. 

Milk and Sugar. Mutton Stew. Fried Bacon. 

Bread. Boiled Potatoes. Tea. 

Coffee. Bread. 

Oatmeal Mush, page 91. 

Pea Soup. Ingredien ts, one pound of peas, one onion, 
two tablespoons of beef fat, salt and pepper. Ad- 
ditions to be made according to taste. One fourth of 
a pound of pork, or a ham-bone, a pinch of red pepper, 
or, an hour before serving, different vegetables, as 
carrots and turnips, chopped and fried. 

Soak the peas over night in two quarts of water. 
In the morning pour it off, put on fresh water, and 
cook with the onion and fat until very soft. Then 
mash or press the peas through a colander or soup- 
strainer to remove the skins, and add enough water 
to make two quarts of somewhat thick soup. Season. 

Mutton Stew, page 187. 

Bread Pancakes. Make in the following manner : 
One quart of milk, three eggs, one tablespoon of butter, 
one teaspoon of salt. Add to this one cup of flour, 
and two cups of bread crumbs that have been soaked 



308 



DISTRICT NURSING 



soft in milk or water and mashed smooth. The batter 
should be rather thick. Bake in small cakes, adding 
more flour if they stick. 



Breakfast 
Oatmeal Mush and 

Milk. 

Battered Toast. 

Coffee. 



TUESDAY, MAY 

Dinner. 
Fried Fish, with 

Mint Sauce. 

Fried Potatoes. 

Bread. 



Supper. 
Fried Farina Pud- 
ding. 
Broiled Salt Pork. 
Bread. Tea. 



Mint Sauce. Two tablespoons of chopped green mint, 
one tablespoon of sugar, one half cup of vinegar. Mix 
and let stand an hour or two. 

Fried Farina Pudding. One pint of water, one pint 
of milk, one teaspoon of salt, one half pint of farina, 
two eggs. Mix the grain and eggs smooth with a part 
of the milk. Heat the remainder to boiling, and stir 
in the egg and flour. Continue stirring until it thick- 
ens, then cook for fifteen minutes in a double boiler. 
When cold, cut it in slices and fry them brown on a 
griddle. 

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 



Breakfast. 


Dinner. 


Supper. 


Soda-biscuit. 


Pea Soup. 


Corn Mush and 


Baked Potatoes, with 


Irish Stew. 


Molasses. 


Drawn Butter Sauce. 


Bread. 


Bread and Grated 


Cocoa. 




Cheese. Tea. 



Drawn Butter Sauce. Make according to the rule 
for White Sauce (page 130), except use water instead 
of milk, and part beef fat instead of all butter. 

Irish Stew (page 186). 



DISTRICT NURSING 309 

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 

Breakfast. Dinner. Supper. 

Oatmeal and Milk. Broiled Beef Liver. Lentil Soup, with 
Bread and Butter. Boiled Potatoes Fried Bread. 

Cocoa. and Carrots, with Smoked Herring. 

Fried Onions. Bread. 

Bread and Cheese. Barley Porridge. 

Boiled Potatoes, and Carrots with Fried Onions. Slice 
hot boiled potatoes and boiled carrots together. Sea- 
son them with salt and pepper, and pour over them 
hot fried onions. 

Lentil Soup. Made like Pea Soup, page 307. 

Fried Bread. Cut bread into small cubes and brown 
it on the grate in a hot oven. 

Barley Porridge. Made with pearl barley soaked 
over night in water, and then cooked for two hours, 
or until it is soft. During the last hour add milk 
instead of water. Flavor with salt and butter. 

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 



Breakfast. 


Dinner. 


Supper. 


Lekwheat Cakes. 


Giblet Soup. 


Codfish Balls. 


Fried Bacon. 


Baked Potatoes, with 


Cheese. 


Coffee. 


Drawn Butter Sauce. 


Bread. 




Bread. 


Tea. 



Giblet Soup. Giblet soup is made from the heart, 
liver, and neck of chicken and other fowls, which in 
city markets are sold separately and very cheap. 
Clean them very carefully, wash in cold water, cut into 
small pieces, and boil for two hours with onions and 
herbs. Then add a little butter, thickening, salt, and 
pepper. 

Codfish Balls (Salt Cod). Codfish is one of the cheap 
foods that seems to be thoroughly appreciated among 



21 



310 



DISTRICT NURSING 



us, and good ways of cooking it are generally under- 
stood. It must be freshened by laying it in water 
over night. When soaked, put it into cold water, and 
bring gradually to the boiling point; then set the 
kettle back where it will keep hot for half an hour; 
at the end of that time separate it into fine shreds, 
add an equal amount of fresh mashed potato, make 
into balls, and fry on a griddle. 



TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 



Breakfast. 

Fried Bacon. 

Boiled Potatoes. 

Bread. 

Coffee. 



Dinner. 
Boiled Corned Beef, 

with 

Horse-radish Sanee. 

Stewed Cabbage. 

Bread. 
Barley Porridge. 



Supper. 

Pea Soup. 

Yeast Biscuit and 

Butter. 

Stewed Fruit. 



Boiled Corned Beef. Boil the beef for three hours, 
very slowly at first, changing the water once if it is 
very salt. 

Horse-radish Sauce. Add grated horse-radish to 
drawn butter sauce. Simmer a few minutes. 

Barley Porridge, page 309. 

SATURDAY, JANUARY 

Breakfast. Dinner. Supper. 

Fried Bacon. Browned Flour Soup. Baked Beans. 
Corn Bread. Stewed Mutton. Bread. 

Coffee. Mashed Potatoes. Apple Dumplings, with 

Bread. Pudding Sauce. Tea. 



Corn Bread. (1) Plain. One cup of sweet milk, one 
cup of sour or buttermilk, or both of sour milk, one tea- 
spoon of salt, one teaspoon of soda, one tablespoon of 
butter or suet or lard, three cups of Indian meal, and 



DISTRICT NURSING 311 

one cup of wheat flour, or all of Indian meal. Mix, 
pour into a tin, and bake forty minutes. 

(2) Richer. The same, with an egg and one half 
cup of sugar added. 

(3) Very nice. No. 1, with the addition of three eggs, 
one half cup of sugar, and one third of a cup of butter, 
one cup of meal being omitted. 

Browned Flour Soup, page 305. 

Apple Dumplings, with Pudding Sauce. The Dump- 
lings. Make a crust like that used in dried apple pie. 
Cut it in squares; place sliced apples in the middle, 
and gather up or pinch the corners. Bake or steam. 

Sauce. One pint of water made into a smooth 
paste with a heaping tablespoon of flour. Cook ten 
minutes. Strain if necessary, sweeten to taste, and 
pour it over one tablespoon of butter, and the juice 
of a lemon, or other flavoring. If lemon is not used, 
add one tablespoon of vinegar. This can be made 
richer by using more butter and sugar. Stir them to 
a cream with the flavoring, and then add the paste. 

SUNDAY, JANUARY 

Breakfast. Dinner. Supper. 
Fried Codfish. Sheep's-head Stew, Potato and Onion 

Bread and Butter. with Soda-biscuit Salad. 

Coffee. Dumplings. Broiled Salt Pork. 
Baked Potatoes. Bread. 
Bread and Grated Corn Mush, with Pud- 
Cheese. Cocoa. ding Sauce. 

Sheep's-head Stew (see Mutton Stew, page 187). 

Potato and Onion Salad. Slice some potatoes (fresh 
boiled and slightly warm are best). Sprinkle them 
with minced onion, salt, and pepper. Dress with a 
little melted butter and vinegar. 

Pudding Sauce, the same as that for Apple Dumplings. 



312 



DISTRICT NURSING 



MONDAY, JANUARY 

Breakfast. Dinner. Supper. 

Fried Mush and Soup from Boiled Boiled Potatoes, with 
Molasses. Beef, with Macaroni. Butter Gravy. 

Bread. Boiled Beef Flank, Dried Apple Roly- 

Coffee. with Mustard Sauce. poly Pudding. 

Bean Pure'e. Bread. Bread. Tea. 

Mustard Sauce. Make some drawn butter in the fol- 
lowing manner : 

A heaping tablespoon of butter, or beef fat, is put 
into a saucepan. When it froths, one heaping table- 
spoon of flour is added, and stirred as it cooks. To 
this add gradually one pint of water, one teaspoon of 
salt, and one fourth of a teaspoon of pepper. If you 
wish to unite economy and good flavor, use one half 
teaspoon of beef fat in making the sauce, and add 
one half teaspoon of butter cut in small pieces just 
before serving. Add a little mustard, and you have 
mustard sauce. 

Bean Puree. Make like Pea Soup, page 307. 

Dried Apple Roly-poly Pudding. Make the soda-bis- 
cuit dough which is used in dried apple pie. Roll it 
out into a thin sheet, and spread with stewed and 
flavored dried apples. Roll it into a round or loaf, 
and bake in a pan containing a little water. 

TUESDAY, JANUARY 



Breakfast. 


Dinner. 


Supper. 


Fried Potatoes. 


Browned Farina 


Bean Soup. 


Bread. 


Soup, with Toast. 


Milk Toast. 


Coffee. 


Stewed Mutton, with 
Yeast Dumplings. 


Tea. 



Browned Farina Soup. Make like Browned Flour 
Soup, except use farina. 



LITERATURE 313 

For other similar bills of fare and recipes, see the 
Lomb Prize Essay, entitled " Practical, Sanitary, and 
Economic Cooking," which is published and sold at 
a low price by the American Public Health Associa- 
tion, and may be bought at any book-store. It is 
most heartily recommended to nurses who do dis- 
trict nursiug as a book which will be found useful 
among the poor and those possessed of moderate 
means. 

LITERATURE 

In preparing the preceding pages the following 
authorities have been consulted. Their works will 
be found useful for reference on subjects connected 
with the chemistry of food, bacteriology, nutrition, 
health, practical cooking, and allied topics. 

" The Chemistry of Cookery.' 1 W. Mattieu Williams. 1885. 

"Food Materials and their Adulterations." Ellen H. Rich- 
ards. 1886. 

"The Chemistry of Cooking and Cleaning." Ellen H. Rich- 
ards. 1882. 

Various Articles on Food in " The Century Magazine." "W. O. 
At water. 1S87-88. 

"Elementary Manual of Chemistry." Eliot and Storer. 
Compiled by W. Ripley Nichols. 1880. 

"A Manual of Practical Hygiene." Edmund A. Parkes. 
Edited by Francois de Chaumont. 1887. 

"A Simple Treatise on Heat." W. Mattieu Williams. 1880. 

"Food for the Invalid." J. Milner Fothergill. 1880. 

'•Food and Feeding." Sir Henry Thomson. 1880. 

"The Boston Cook Book." D. A. Lincoln. 1884. 

"New England Breakfast Breads." Lucia Gray Swett. 1890. 

" Miss Parloa's New Cook Book." Maria Parloa. 1880. 

" Diet for the Sick." Mary E. Henderson. 1885. 

"Food in Health and Disease." I. Burnet Yeo. 

u Delicate Feasting." Theodore Child. 1890. 

"The Story of the Bacteria." T. Mitchell Prudden. 1890. 

"Dust and its Dangers." T. Mitchell Prudden. 1890. 



314 CHARTS 

"Bacteria and their Products." German Sims Woodhead. 
1892. 

" The Methods of Bacteriological Investigation." Ferdinand 
Heuppe, M. D. 1886. 

"Microbes, Ferments, and Molds." E. L. Trouessart. 1886. 

"Principles of Bacteriology." Alexander C. Abbott, M. D. 
1892. 

11 The Human Body." H. Newell Martin. 1890. 

"A Text-book of Human Physiology." Austin Flint, M. D., 
LL. D. 1888. 

"Domestic Hygiene of the Child." Julius Uffelmann, M. D. 

(A Translation.) Edited by Mary Putnam Jacobi, M. D. 1891. 

"A Treatise on the Diseases of Infancy and Childhood." 
J. Lewis Smith, M. D. 1886. 

Article in the "Medical News" on "Diseases of Children In- 
cident to Summer." Victor C. Vaughan. June 9, 1888. 

"Practical, Sanitary, and Economic Cooking." Mary H. 
Abel. 1890. (The Lomb Prize Essay.) 

" The Town Dweller." Dr. Fothergill. 

"A Guide to Sanitary House Inspection." W. Paul Ger- 
hard. 1890. 

"Papers of the American Public Health Association." 1892. 

"Foods." Edward Smith. 1883. 



CHARTS 

Charts of the composition of various foods may be 
made like the following, for use in a cooking school. 
They are valuable and convenient for reference. 

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF AN EGG 
Shell. 

Carbonate of lime. 

Yolk. 

Nitrogenous matter 16.00% 

Fat 30.70% 

Salts 1.30% 

Water 52.00% 

White. 

Nitrogenous matter 20.40% 

Salts 1.60% 

Water ..,,... , 78.00% 



CHARTS 315 

COMPOSITION OF COW'S MILK 

Water 87.4% 

Fat 4.0% 

Sugar and soluble salts 5-0% 

Nitrogenous matter and insoluble salts 3.6% 

Dr. Miller. 

COMPOSITION OF COCOA 

Cocoa butter 48.00% 

Nitrogenous matter, albumen, etc 21.00% 

Theobromine 4.00% 

Starch and traces of sngar 11.00% 

Cellulose 3.00% 

Coloring matter and aromatic essences Traces 

Mineral matter 3.00% 

Water 10.00% 

Payen. 

COMPOSITION OF BREAD 

Nitrogenous matter 8.10% 

Carbohydrates, starch, sugar, etc 51.00% 

Fatty matter 1.60% 

Mineral matter 2.30% 

Water 37.00% 

Cellulose 0.00% 



COMPOSITION OF POTATO 

Water 75.00% 

Starch 18.80% 

Nitrogenous matter 2.00% 

Sugar 3.00% 

Fat 0.20% 

Salts, principally potash 1.00% 



APPARATUS 

The following is a list of the necessary furniture, 
utensils, china, and miscellaneous articles for furnish- 



ing a cooking school: 



31( 



APPARATUS 



CHINA FOR SERVING 



3 Glass cream pitchers. 
6 Small china cream pitchers. 
6 Coffee-cups and saucers. 
6 Tea-cups and saucers. 
3 Cocoa-cups and saucers. 

2 Bouillon-cups and saucers. 

3 Egg-cups. 

3 Egg-glasses. 

6 Tall, slender glasses for milk- 
punch, egg-nog, etc. 

1 Small red goblet for serving 
beef-juice. 

6 Tumblers. 

1 Spt)on-holder. 

3 Glass sugar bowls. 

2 Soup bowls. 
2 Sakid bowls. 

2 Finger bowls. 

3 Small teapots. 
1 Cocoa-pot. 

1 Tete-a-tete set. 



1 Oatmeal set. 

1 Cracker jar. 

6 Dinner plates. 

6 Tea plates. 

6 Individual bread plates. 

6 Individual Butter plates. 

6 Glass sauce dishes. 

6 Bone dishes. 

1 Vinegar cruet. 

2 Individual salt-cellars. 

2 Individual pepper-bottles. 

3 Small oval platters. 

3 Medium-size oval platters. 
3 Silver or planished tin covers, 

for platters or vegetable 

dishes. 
6 Silver knives. 
6 Silver forks. 
6 Silver spoons. 
1 Pair of silver sugar-tongs. 
1 Champagne tap. 



COMMON KITCHEN CHINA 



3 Large pitchers. 

3 Small pitchers. 

6 Half -pint cups. 

6 Saucers. 

12 Custard cups. 

6 Individual scallop dishes. 

3 Mixing bowls. 



6 Quart bowls. 

6 Pint bowls. 

3 Large vegetable dishes. 

3 Small vegetable dishes. 

3 Pudding dishes. 

1 Large jelly-mold. 

6 Small jelly-molds. 



GRANITE-WARE 



2 Six-quart covered kettles. 

1 Six-pint double boiler. 

2 Three-pint double boilers. 
1 Quart double boiler. 

1 Coffee-pot. 



3 Stew-pans. 
6 Saucepans. 
2 Omelet-pans. 
2 Hand-basins. 



APPARATUS 



317 



IRON AND TIN WARE 



1 Tin tea-kettle. 

6 Half-pint measure cups in 

thirds. 
6 Half-pint measure cups in 

fourths. 

2 Tin jelly-molds. 

1 Large-mouthed tunnel. 

3 Small tunnels. 
1 Colander. 

1 Taper soup-strainer. 

3 ( loarse wire strainers. 
3 Fine wire strainers. 

2 Tea-strainers. 
1 Flour sieve. 

1 Dredging box. 
1 Egg-poacher. 
1 Grater. 

1 Whip-churn. 

2 Dover egg-beaters. 
1 Lemon-squeezer. 

1 Meat-press. 

1 Potato-masher. 

L' Large wire broilers. 

2 Small wire broilers. 
1 Oyster-broiler. 

1 Wire cake-rest. 

2 Large tin pans. 



3 Frying-pans. 

2 Iron baking-pans for bread. 

2 Sponge-cake pans. 

1 Iron gem pan. 

2 Muffin tins. 

1 Chafing-dish. 

3 Lacquered trays. 

3 Small trays. 

12 Japanned boxes of different 

sizes, for flour, etc. 
G Tea-caddies. 
1 Biscuit-cutter. 

4 Cutting-knives. 

3 Vegetable knives. 

1 Chopping-knife. 

1 Meat-cleaver. 

6 Forks. 

1 Set of steel skewers. 

1 Corkscrew. 

1 Can-opemr. 

1 Ice-pick. 

1 Sugar-scoop. 

1 Basting-spoon. 

6 Mixing-spoons. 
12 Tablespoons. 
12 Teaspoons. 



WOODEN WARE 



1 Coffee-mill. 

1 Ice-cream freezer. 

1 Salt-box. 

1 Spice-box. 

1 Dish-tub. 

1 Large oval chopping-tray. 

2 Meat-boards. 
1 Bread-board. 



1 Molding-board. 

1 Rolling-pin. 

2 Butter-spatters for butter- 
balls. 

2 Cake-spoons. 

2 Salt-spoons. 

2 Vegetable brushes. 

2 Scrubbing brushes. 



318 



APPARATUS 



Table-cloths. 

Napkins. 

Hand-towels. 

Tea-towels. 

Dish-cloths. 



LINEN 



Ice-bag. 

Jelly-bags. 

Cleaning-cloths. 



MISCELLANEOUS 

1 Chemists' thermometer. 1 Quevenne's lactometer. 



1 Oven thermometer. 
1 Arnold sterilizer. 
1 Feser's lactoscope. 



1 Hamper for soiled linen. 
6 Quart Mason jars. 
6 Pint Mason jars. 



FURNITURE 



1 Cooking stove, with ap- 
purtenances. 

1 Coal-hod. 

1 Coal-shovel. 

1 Galvanized iron covered 
waste-pail. 

1 Galvanized iron sink. 

2 Towel-racks. 



2 Tables. 
1 Refrigerator. 
1 China-closet. 
1 Open dresser. 
6 Chairs. 
1 Broom. 
1 Dust-pan. 
1 Dust-brush. 



¥ 



INDEX 



Absorption, 68. 

Adaptation of food to particular needs, 
69. 

Air, 14, 15, 18, 20, 38-44, 54, 56, 64. 

Albumen, 17, 25. 27, 52, 59, 61, 76, 146, 
152, 168, 169, 283, 292. 

Albuminoids, 17, 25, 62. 

Ale, 119. 

Apparatus for furnishing a cooking- 
school, 315. 

Apple dumplings, 311. 

Apple (dried) pie, 306. 

Apple soup, 144. 

Apples, 130 ; baked, 225, 226 ; stewed 
226. 

Apple-tea, 106. 

Arrowroot, 32, 34, 85. 

Atmospheric pressure, 38. 

Bacon, 300. 

Bacteria, 23, 49, 99, 285. 

Bacterial poisons in milk, 285, 286. 

Bacteriology, 5, 313. 

Baking-powder, 230, 245. 

Barley jelly, 296. 

Barley porridge, 309. 

Barley pudding, 205. 

Barlev water, 101, 284. 

Beef, 169, 170, 310. 

Beef-juice, 75. 

Bottled, 76. 

Broiled, 76. 
Beefsteak, 27, 170, 171. 
Beef-tapioca soup, 140. 
Beef-tea, 75, 116. 

Bottled, 77. 

With hydrochloric acid, 77. 
Beer, 119. 

Biedert's Cream Mixture, 293, 295. 
Bile, 51, 61. 
Bills of fare, 304. 
Birds, 175. 

Field-larks, 180. 

Grouse, 179. 

Partridge, 176. 

Pheasants, 178. 

Reed-birds. 179. 

Squabs, 176. 

Snipe, 177. 

Woodcock, 178. 
Biscuits, cream-of-tartar, 242. 
Biscuits, twin, 243. 
Blanc-man»;e. 209, 210. 
Boiled corned beef, 310. 
Boiled potatoes and carrots, with fried 

onions, 309. 



Bouillon, 143. 
Brandy-milk, 98. 
Bread, 34, 76, 232. 

Composition of, 315. 

Cream-of-tartar biscuit, 242. 

Gluten, 245. 

Graham, 241. 

Graham gems, 244. 

Milk, 239. 

Oatmeal muffins, 244. 

Rusk, 240, 241. 

Snow-cakes, 243. 

Sticks, 24(i. 

Water, 238. 
Bread pancakes, 307. 
Bread soup, 304. 
Broths, 27, 75. 

Beef, 78. 

Beefsteak, 79. 

Chicken, 60. 

Clam, 82. 

.Mutton, 81. 

Oyster, 82. 

Scotch, mi. 

Serving of, 275. 
Browned farina soup, 312. 
Browned flour soup, 305. 
Butter-cream, 193. 
Buttered water toast, 129. 

Cake, 246. 

Care in baking, 247. 

Chocolate, 250. 

Dream, 252. 

Feather, 249. 

Invalid's sponge, 248. 

Layer, 250. 

Process of making, 247. 

Rose, 25a 

White, 251. 
Cake filling and frosting, 252. 

Caramel, 252. 

Chocolate, 253. 

Cream, 253. 

White mountain, 252. 
Calf s-foot jelly, 28. 
Caramel. 37, 38, 115. 

To make, lv»7. 
Carbohydrates, 18, 19, 31, 62, 63, 64, 65, 

58, 71. 
Carbon, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, IS, 29, 36, 37, 171. 
Carbonic acid, 10, 11, 14, 15, 21, 40, 42, 

54, 107, 234, 235. 
Carmine for coloring, 210. 
Carrageen, 209. 
Cellulose, 299. 



320 



INDEX 



Charts, 314. 

Chemical changes, 10, 11, 15. 
Chemistry of foods, 313. 
Chicken, broiled, 174. 
Chicken jelly, 126. 
Chicken panada, 141. 
Chicken soup, 135. 
Chicken-tapioca soup, 139. 
China for serving, 316. 
Chocolate, 108, 110, 200. 

Serving of, 269. 

To make, 109. 
Clam broth, 82. 
Cocoa, 108, 299, 315. 
Cocoa cordial, 119. 
Cocoa-nibs, 109. 
Cocoa-shells, 109. 
Codfish balls, 309. 
Coffee, 9, 22, 23, 114, 307. 

Composition of, 116. 

Serving of, 269, 275. 

To make, 117, 118. 
Coffee jelly, 124. 
Coffee-syrup, 104. 

Composition of the body, 16, 17, 18, 24. 
Condensed milk, 288, 298. 
Consomme^ 142. 
Contagious diseases, care of dishes in, 

271. 
Convalescent's diet, 260. 
Corn bread, 310. 
Corn coffee, 307. 
Cream, 30, 63, 104. 
Cream, condensed, 296. 
Cream-of-celery soup, 137. 
Cream-of-rice soup, 138. 
Cream of tartar, 10, 236. 
Cream-of-tartar biscuit, 242. 
Creams, 127, 195. 

Chocolate, 200. 

Coffee, 199. 

Egg, 198. 

Peach foam, 202. 

Rice, 202. 

Tapioca, 201. 

Velvet, 199. 
Cream sauce, 149. 
Cream toast, 130. 
Croutons, 132, 135. 
Custards, 195. 

Soft, 195, 278. 

Baked, 196. 

French, 197. 

Rennet, 197. 

Dextrine, 33, 63, 128, 163, 290. 

Diastase, 34, 50. 

Diet, 72. 

Diet lists or menus for the sick, 254. 

Digestibility of foods, 9. 

Digestion, 9, 49, 66, 110, 116. 

Digestive fluids, 50, 51. 

District nursing, 301. 

Drawn butter, 194. 

Drawn butter sauce, 308. 



Dried apple pie, 306. 
Drinks, 95. 

Egg-nog, 95. 
Eggs, 25, 26, 52, 152, 314. 
Composition, 152. 
Omelets, 156. 
Creamy, 157. 
Foamy, 158. 
Orange, 160. 
Spanish, 160. 
To serve, 277. 
With chicken, 159. 
With ham, No. 1, 158. 
With ham, No. 2, 159. 
With jelly, 159. 
With parsley, 160. 
With tomatoes, 159. 
Poached, 155. 
Scrambled, No. 1, 156. 
Scrambled, No. 2, 156. 
Soft-cooked, 154. 
Egg toast, 131. 
Elements, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 56, 

57, 59. 
Ether, boiling-point of, 30 
Extractives, 24, 25, 26, 28, 59. 

Farina, 87, 91, 92. 

Farinaceous foods, 289, 291, 292. 

Fats, 17, 18, 19, 28, 29, 30, 31, 58, 60-65, 

68, 71, 169, 292, 294. 
Feeding of children, 280. 
Analysis of Mellin's food prepared 

for use, 291. 
Care of feeding-bottles, 287. 
Condensed milk, 288. 
Farinaceous foods, 289. 
Food. 
Amount at each meal, 293. 
Dilution, 293. 
First week, 295. 
From the first to the sixth week, 

295. 
From the sixth week to the sixth 

month, 296. 
From tbe sixth month to the 

tenth, 297. 
From the tenth to the twelfth 

month, 298. 
From the twelfth to the eighteenth 
month, 299. 
Food after eighteen months, 299. 
Foods to be carefully avoided, 300. 
Field-larks, 180. 
Fire, 14, 302. 
Fish, 5, 191. 
Boiled, 194. 
Broiled, 193. 
Creamed, 193. 
To prepare, 191. 
When in season, 192. 
Flavors, 9, 59, 79. 
Flaxseed tea, 105. 
Food, 9, 14, 18, 25, 49, 53. 



INDEX 



321 



French toast, 131. 

Fried bread, 309. 

Fried farina pudding, 308. 

Fruits, 224, 71, 20$ 226, 229. 

Apple compote, 220, 

Apple jellv. 230. 

Apple*, baked, 225, 226. 

Apples, stewed. 228. 

Cranberry jelly and sauce, 227. 

Grape jelly and sauce, 228. 

Prunes, stewed, 227. 

tag of, 276. 

Fuel and kindlings, 16. 

Gastric juice, 50. 

Gelatin, 28, 53, 89, 76, 120, 122, 168, 169. 
Gelatine, 120, 121, 222. 
Gelatinoids, 17, 25, 

Genera] rules for the feeding of chil- 
dren, 294. 
Giblet soup, 309. 
Glucose, .v., 87, 52, 63. 
Graham bread, 24L 
Graham gems, 244. 
Granite-ware, 316. 
Grape Jelly, 
Grape Juice, 105. 
Grouse, 17:», 180. 
Grn< Is 

Arrowroot, 84. 

Barley, 84 

Cracker, 87. 

Farina, 87. 

Flout. 86. 

Imperial (.'ranuin, 88. 

Indian meal, 89. 

Oatmeal, 85, 86. 

Racahout dea Arabes, 88. 
1 tag of, 68, 275. 
Glycerin, 80. 

•1, 68, 64, 65. 

Hamburg .steak, No. 1 (scraped beef), 

Hamburg steak, No. 2, 173. 

Heat, 2, 111, 13, 14, 15, 20, 56, 54, 61, 169, 

218. 
Hemoglobin, 17, 59. 
Horse-radish sauce, 310. 
Hum in milk. 28L 

Hydrochloric acid, 10, 11, 28, 52, 77. 7a 
Hydrogen, 12, 13, 16, is, 19, 24, 29. 

Ice-cream, 217. 

Frozen custard, 221. 

Philadelphia, 220. 

Royal, 220. 

With an improvised freezer, 221. 
Ice-neam freezers, 217. 
Ices. 217. 

Apricot, 224. 
Ideal diet, 08. 
Imperial Granum, 291, 297. 
Inorganic matter of the body and of 

food, 18, 65, 66. 



Jellies, 120. 
From fruits : 

Apple. 230 

Cranberry, 227. 

Grape, 

Serving of, 276. 

To preserve, 230. 
From gelatine, 120. 

Chicken, 126. 

Coffee, 124. 

French, 125. 

Lemon, 123. 

Orange, 123. 

Puncheon, 126. 

Wine, No. 1, 122. 

Wine, No. 2, 122. 
Restorative, 125. 
Junket, 196, 278. 

Kitchen china, 316. 
Kumiss, 106, 107. 

Lactometer, 46. 

Lactoscope, 46. 

Lactose. 18, 37. 

Lamb chops, 184 

Lead, 12. 

Lemonade, 93 

Lemon jelly. 128. 

Lentil soup, 309. 

Lettuce salad, 213. 

Light diet, 256. 

I.ime-water (experiment with), 21. 

Linen, 318. 

Liquid diet, 254. 

Literature, 313. 

Liver, 68. 

Lobsters, 300. 

Lome prize essay, 302. 

.Malted milk, 290, 291. 

.Meats, 5. 168, 

M. llins food, 283, 284, 290, 297, 298, 299. 

Menus for the sick. 2: 4. 

Micro-organisms, 1, 2. 22, 23,40, 46,47, 

49, 98, 230, 281, 2s4, 285. 
Milk, 30, 44-4'.), 57. 273. 

Composition of cow's, 45, 281, 315. 

Condensed. 298. 

Malted, 2:mi. 

Pasteurized, 288. 

Preserved 

Serving of. 275. 

Sterilization of, 47, 48, 49, 99, 100, 
281, 2>4, . 

Supplies, 49, 281, 282. 
Milk and seltzer, 100. 
Milk and soda-water, 101. 
Milk lemonade, 97. 
Milk-punch, 95, 275. 
Milk toast. 130. 
Milk-sugar, 29S. 
Mineral matter in milk, 283. 
Mineral salts, 18, 57, 65, 66, 71, 111, 162, 

175, 226. 



322 



INDEX 



Mint sauce, 308. 
Mock-bisque soup, 135. 
Mulled wine, 118. 
Mush and porridge, 90. 

Cracked wheat, 93. 

Farina, 92. 

Granula, 93. 

Imperial Granum, 93. 

Indian meal, 94. 

Oatmeal, 91. 

Rice, 94. 

Wheat germ, 92. 
Mustard sauce, 312. 
Mutton, 181, 182. 

Nestle's food, 291, 297. 
Nitrogen, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 24, 42, 59. 
Nitrogenous compounds, 53, 58, 62. 
Noodles, 305. 
Noodle soup, 305. 
Nutrition, 53, 57, 313. 
Absorption, 68. 
Adaptation of foods to particular 

needs, 69. 
Definition, 54. 
Ideal diet, 68. 
Imperfect, 70. 
Inorganic matters and vegetable 

acids, 65. 
Summary of the digestibility of foods, 

68. 
Value of protein, fats, carbohydrates, 

and extractives, 58-65. 
Ways in which food supplies the 
wants of the body, 56. 

Oatmeal, 80, 85, 86, 90. 91. 
Oatmeal muffins, 244. 
Oil, 10, 30. 

Cod-liver, 63. 

Fixed and volatile, 28. 

Olive, 30, 31, 211. 
Omelets, 156. 
Orange jelly, 123. 
Oxygen, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 29, 40, 

42, 59, 64. 
Oysters, 145. 

Broiled, 149. 

Broth, 150. 

Chafing-dish, 151. 

Composition, 145. 

Creamed, 148. 

Fancy roast, 150. 

Pan-broiled, 150. 

Raw, 147. 

Roasted in the shell, 147. 

Serving, 277. 

Soup, 134. 

Stew, 148. 

Tea No. 1, 82. 

Tea No. 2, 82. 

Panada, 79, 141. 
Pancreatic juice, 51, 61, 290. 
Paraffin, 230. 



Partridges, 176. 

Pasteurized milk, 288. 

Peach foam, 202. 

Peas, 190. 

Pea soup, 307. 

Peptogenic milk powder, 284. 

Peptonized milk, 296. 

Pheasants, 178. 

Pbosphated gelatine, 121. 

Physical changes, 10, 11, 12. 

Pigeons, 180. 

Pink blanc-mange, 210. 

Pink sugar, 209. 

Poisons in milk (bacterial), 22, 285, 286. 

Porridge, 90, 91. 

Porter, 119. 

Potato and onion salad, 311. 

Potatoes, 32, 34, 70, 161. 

Baked, 165. 

Boiled, 163. 

Composition, 161. 

Creamed, 166. 

Duchess, 166. 

Mashed, 164. 

Boasted, 165. 
Potato soup, 136. 
Preserved milk, 289. 
Protein, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 52, 53, 56, 58, 

59, 60, 62, 64, 68, 71. 
Puddings, 195. 

Baked custards, 196. 

Barley, 205. 

Chocolate cream, 200. 

Coffee cream, 199. 

Corn-starch, 204. 

Cream-of-rice, 206. 

Egg cream, 198. 

French custard, 197. 

Fruit tapioca, 207. 

Irish moss blanc-mange, 209. 

Orange baskets, 208. 

Orange layers, 208. 

Orange omelet, 160. 

Peach foam, 202. 

Pink blanc-mange, 210. 

Princess, 204. 

Rennet custard, 197. 

Rice cream, 202. 

Slip, 197. 

Soft custard, 195. 

Snow pudding, 203. 

Tapioca cream, 201. 

Tapioca jelly, 207. 

"Velvet cream, 199. 
Puncheon jelly, 126. 

Racahout des Arabes, 88, 89. 

Reed-birds, 179. 

Rennet, 198. 

Restorative jelly, 125. 

Rice, 76, 79, 81. 

Rice-water, 102. 

Ridge's food, 291, 297. 

Roly-poly pudding, 312. 

Rules for the feeding of children, 294. 



INDEX 



323 



Salads, 10, 71, 211. 
Celery, 216. 
Chicken, 214. 
Lettuce, 213. 
Potato, 215. 

" with olives, 216. 
Salad Dressing, 211. 
French, 212. 
Mayonnaise, 212. 
Saliva, 50, 290, 51. 
Salt (sodium chlorid), 11, 18, 66. 
Scotch hroth, 80. 
Scraped beef, 172. 
Serving, 267. 
Sherbets, 217, 277. 
Lemon, 222. 
Orange, 223. 
Sherry and egg, 98. 
Sippets, 132. 
Snipe, 177. 
Soda-water, 101. 
Sodium chlorid, 11, 18. 
Soups, 4, 27, 134. 
Apple, 144. 
Beef-tapioca, 140. 
Bouillon, 143. 
Bread, 304. 
Browned farina, 312. 

" flour, 305. 
Chicken, 135. 
Chicken panada, 141. 
Chicken-tapioca, 139. 
Consomme\ 142. 
Cream-of-celery, 137. 
Cream-of-rice, 138. 
Giblet, 309. 
Lentil, 309. 
Mock-bisque, 135. 
Noodle, 305. 
Oyster, 134. 
Pea, 307. 
Potato, 136. 

Queen Victoria's favorite, 139. 
Spores, 23, 24, 48, 99. 
Squabs, 176. 

Starch, 31, 33, 34, 35, 62, 63, 65, 68, 51, 
18, 58, 83, 85, 128, 161. 
Digestion of, 51, 52, 84, 290. 
Composition, 32, 58. 
Tests for, 32. 
Steak (beef), 27, 70, 171. 
A la Maitre d'HOtel, 173. 
Hamburg. No. 1 (scraped beef), 172. 

" 2, 173. 
Tenderloin, 173. 
Steam, 12, 20, 29. 
Sterilization, 
of Milk, 47, 48, 98, 99, 100, 287, 284. 
of Vessels for holding milk, 281. 
of Water, 19, 23, 24. 
Stews, 185. 
Chicken, 185. 
Beef, 186. 
Mutton, 187. 
Strawberries, 102, 103, 105, 121, 224. 



Sucrose, 36, 52. 

Sugar, 18, 32, 35, 36, 37, 38, 52, 58, 63 

65, 68, 283. 
Sweeping and dusting, 303. 
Sweetbreads, 188. 

Creamed, 189. 

Fricasseed, 189. 

With peas, 190. 
Syrups, Apple, 103, 

Apricot, 103. 

Chocolate, 104. 

Coffee, 104. 

Currant, 103. 

Orange, 103. 

Peach, 103. 

Raspberry, 103. 

Strawberry, 102. 

Vanilla, 104. 

Tapioca, 34, 76, 79, 81, 201, 207. 
Tea, 22, 110, 269. 

Composition, 111. 

Kinds. 112, 113. 

Serving of, 275. 

To prepare, 113, 114. 

Value as food, 110, 23. 
Tenderloin (steak), 173. 
Thermometers (oven), 239. 
Toast, 128. 

Cream, 130. 

Croutons, 132. 

French, 131. 

Milk, 130. 

Sippets, 132. 

Vermicelli, 133. 

Water (butteredX 129. 
Toast and cheese, 306. 
Tomatoes, 135. 

Vanilla syrup, 104. 
Veal broth, 284. 
Venison, 70, 180. 
Ventilation, 42. 
Volatile oils, 28. 

Washing of dishes, 303. 

Waste. 19, 67. 

Waste-pails, 5. 

Water, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 

54, 65, 218. 
Water-ice, 217, 224. 
Wheat-flour, 232. 
Whey, 295. 

Wine, 96. 

With rennet, 96. 
White-sauce, 130. 
Wine jelly. No. 1, 122. 
Wine jelly. No. 2, 122. 
Wine, mulled, 118. 
Wine whey, 96. 
Woodcock, 178. 
Wooden ware, 317. 

Yeast, 232, 233. 
Liquid, 237. 

Zwieback, 300. 



WAR SI 1904 



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